Unintended Consequences
by Umei no Mai
Summary: Mermaids are very free with their affections and pirates aren't the type to say no to a pretty face; logically then any number of those who sail the Grand Line might have offspring they've never met. A parent casts a long shadow over the life of their child regardless, but pirates' children have so much more to prove and Dracule Lisska is no exception to this rule.
1. False Starts

**False Starts**

Gin sat in his cabin on board the Dreadnaught Sabre as the storm raged on outside, frowning down at the catatonic prisoner his captain had made him responsible for. She didn't look like much, her white braids loosely clipped to the sides of her head and a rough bandage around where her eyes had been; eyes Gin had been forced to remove to prevent the damage done during her capture from festering. Her wrists were bound in Kairoseki cuffs, which were likely why she lay unresponsive on his cabin floor, oblivious to her surroundings: Don Krieg claimed she was a Devil Fruit User. One who could heal injuries, which was why Krieg wanted her at his disposal as they ventured down the Grand Line. However it seemed the powers of the Akuma no Mi carried serious disadvantages if being put in the Seastone cuffs Krieg had stolen from one of East Blue's Marine bases rendered a wielder catatonic on contact. If she hadn't been so valuable to the captain she would likely have been left at the mercy of the crew; instead Don Krieg had shoved her at Gin and told him to keep her alive.

Not an easy task, for all he had only been doing so for a day. The woman seemed deaf and paralysed by the cuffs unless she came into direct contact with Gin, skin to skin, at which point she was capable of both some degree of movement and rational conversation. When conscious she was disconcertingly polite and disturbingly pragmatic, leading Gin to worry about what might be in store for them along the Grand Line that being helpless and at the mercy of a ruthless pirate elicited so little concern.

The next day he came to understand, just a little, why his prisoner had been so blasé about her situation as he witnessed his captain's fleet be ripped apart by a lone, hawk-eyed swordsman in an open boat.

* * *

With the fleet destroyed, his captain's flagship in tatters and said captain badly wounded all at the hands of one man, Gin had to make a number of tough decisions. The first one was to release his prisoner from her restraints so she could make herself useful and help keep everyone alive. The second one was to send those of the crew not injured diving after the provisions that had been stored on board the less important vessels in Don Krieg's fleet, as without that food they would all starve in short order. Unfortunately none of the supplies were recovered and several of the crew were swallowed whole by ridiculously large sea creatures while in the water.

His prisoner however was docile, calm and helpful, healing the crew of minor injuries and identifying more serious ones such as broken bones and internal bleeding despite the stormy conditions. Her matter-of-fact manner did a lot to maintain order while Don Krieg was incapacitated; it gave the impression that nothing was seriously amiss. As the day ended Gin hunted her down for a private conversation: she was the only one with any experience of the Grand Line which made her invaluable in the current mess.

"Who was that?" He asked after describing their attacker.

"Shichibukai," the woman told him simply. Gin had heard of the infamous Shichibukai, but they had never seemed relevant before. After all, they had never been seen in East Blue that he knew of. But they were in the Grand Line now.

"Our Log Pose got smashed," he told her. To his shock, the woman's face twitched into a smile.

"Oh god, oh god, we're all going to die," she deadpanned. "Seriously though, we are. Unless you've got a good quality chart somewhere on board?"

"They got washed overboard when the hawk-eyed man chopped half the helm off," Gin said flatly, displeased with how unconcerned she seemed. She frowned thoughtfully.

"And you say we don't have much food?"

"Four days' worth provided we stick to half rations."

"Well," she said hesitantly, "this used to be a Marine vessel, right?"

"So?" Gin wanted to know why that was relevant.

"So, you could head back to East Blue," she suggested tentatively. "It is slightly less certain death than staying on the Grand Line at this point."

"Explain."

"Marine Vessels have the hulls coated in Kairoseki to make them less visible to Sea Kings, allowing them to move through the Calm Belts fairly safely. It would take five days, but I can get this ship back to East Blue provided we start right now, I'm allowed to stay on deck without the cuffs and you feed me." She waited for him to think it over.

"How?" Gin asked.

"My Devil Fruit Power allows me to heal, but that isn't its primary function," she told him quietly. "I don't want to die out here any more than you do."

Gin stepped away from her. "Do it."

Watching her walk up on deck to sit at the foot of the mast, Gin wondered exactly what her Devil Fruit Power actually was. Not that he thought he could get her to answer; she hadn't even told him her name yet and had an edge that suggested she'd been at the mercy of men like Krieg before. Force would just make her stubborn and he didn't care much at this point who she was or what she could do, so long as she could get them out of the Pirate's Graveyard.

* * *

Five days later they were back in East Blue as promised and Krieg was well enough to resume command once more. The first thing he did was put the woman back in the Kairoseki cuffs and yell at Gin for setting her loose. Gin did not complain; Don Krieg didn't care for his Combat Commander's reasons, only that an order had been disobeyed. Gin didn't tell his captain how they had gotten out of the Grand Line; none of the rest of the crew had an inkling how it had happened and that was fine by him. He owed the woman now, owed her the lives of his captain and crew. Now they were back in East Blue it would be easy to claim she had died and drop her somewhere quiet to repay that debt. She was quiet, unobtrusive and forgettable, which would help him dispose of her.

A week later they were still adrift and most of the crew could do no more than lie on the deck and groan in hunger. Thankfully they were not yet out of water, which would have been a death sentence. Gin poured a ration of water down his captive's throat every day, but other than that simply couldn't spare the time for conversation as their situation was getting desperate. The lookout had spotted a Marine vessel just ten minutes earlier and Don Krieg had demanded he act as a decoy.

Gin wasn't sure his prisoner would still be alive when he managed to return to his captain.

* * *

On returning to the Dreadnaught Sabre four days later after his excellent meal on the Baratie, Gin helped set a course back to the floating restaurant then returned to his cabin to check on his prisoner. She wasn't dead, but that was all that could really be said about her condition. She had rubbed her wrists bloody in his absence and was so gaunt she could have passed for a corpse. Getting her to swallow her water ration was so difficult he was tempted to remove her from the cuffs entirely –or just slit her throat and call it a day. He didn't though; he had a plan for her now. The blond chef who'd fed him wouldn't turn away a woman in need and considering her condition no-one would argue if he told them she had died in his absence. He just had to dump her somewhere quiet on the restaurant so she would only be found after they left. He could even leave her belongings with her.

The woman didn't own much; a small chest containing common, mundane things like clothing, soap and sewing thread. No weapons, no charts or navigational aids, no money. The lack of value of her possessions was the only reason Don Krieg had left them alone. Gin was privately a little suspicious of a person who knew the Grand Line yet didn't even carry a weapon, but recognised there wasn't anything to be done about it. Perhaps she was as mundane and peaceful as she seemed; if she wasn't, better to treat her well and leave her somewhere quiet than to make her angry. That she hadn't reacted to the loss of her eyes was telling as well. Not that he'd told anyone his suspicions.

Two days later Gin was feeling a niggling of concern as the woman still wasn't responding properly. In fact, other than swallowing a daily water ration her only action was to rub her wrists closer and closer to the bone against the Kairoseki cuffs. Gin could tell than in another day or so the cuffs would be rubbing against the exposed bones; after that it wouldn't take long for her hands to be completely severed from her wrists, freeing her. He had heard of animals chewing their own legs off to escape traps, but this was something else. Perhaps he could persuade Don Krieg to move the cuffs to her ankles instead…

However, as they had just reached the Baratie, that would have to wait.

Half an hour later and Gin was feeling a little conflicted about the situation. Not that it prevented him from obeying Don Krieg; his captain terrified him too much for that. However during the lull between his captain stating his intent to take over the Baratie and the crew recovering enough to do so Gin had unlocked the woman's cuffs, slung her over his shoulder, grabbed her possessions, lowered himself onto the top deck of the floating restaurant and left her in the cabin belonging to Red-Leg Zeff. She would be safe there regardless of what happened next. Wrapping his jacket around her shoulders and roughly bandaging her wrists, he left to keep an eye on the coming battle.

Gin ignored the niggling hope in the back of his mind that his captain would lose the coming battle. Don Krieg never lost. He watched his former ship sink into wreckage at the hands of the hawk-eyed Shichibukai and the failed assault of the crew before turning to descend to the main deck of the Baratie; it seemed he would have to join the fight after all.


	2. Regrouping

**Regrouping**

Sanji was slightly puzzled by what Gin had said to him before leaving. It had been almost an afterthought, but the look in the pirate's eye had suggested something more.

"I left my jacket on the top deck," Gin had said with a smile, blood dripping down his chin. "Keep an eye on it for me, will ya?"

It seemed a stupid thing to say, so Sanji decided to go up to the top deck and have a look.

He found the jacket. He wasn't expecting what was under it.

* * *

Sanji loved women. It wasn't just their beauty and grace, but everything they stood for. That was why he refused to raise a hand to one, even if it killed him. Women were precious treasures to be protected and cherished. Hence why, on seeing the mangled and emaciated form curled up in Gin's jacket, the blond chef felt the urge to chase after the damned pirate and kill him properly. However he couldn't possibly do that until his new charge had been cared for, so instead he dashed off in search of what remained of the first-aid kits. This poor lady's need was far greater than any of the other chefs.

While carefully cleaning her chewed wrists Sanji took the time to consider her appearance. She had long, grubby pale hair in three braids that fell almost to her knees, pale, translucent skin that clung to her sharply boned face and slender hands with calluses that marked her as a weapons user of some kind. Her clothing was torn and dirty, but of high quality: loose, ankle length dark green deck trousers, a flower patterned halter top in shades of green under a black haori and black slippers on her feet. She also looked vaguely familiar, but Sanji couldn't place it. He had certainly never seen her before. At least, he thought not; it was hard to be sure when she wore a blindfold. A blindfold with old bloodstains on it, suggesting something the blond chef really didn't want to contemplate.

A soft gasp as he finished cleaning her wrists told him she was awake.

"Hello, princess," he said gently, not wanting to frighten someone who had been so cruelly treated. "You're on board the Baratie in East Blue."

"Gin?"

"Ah, he left you here," Sanji said flatly. "Good riddance to the shitty bastard."

The girl chuckled, the sound more like a coughing fit than anything else. "He wasn't so bad," she protested faintly.

"Meh," Sanji grumbled, not wanting to argue.

"Isn't the Baratie a restaurant?"

"Oh yes! The best in the Blues!" Sanji said brightly. "And I have some food here just for you, princess!" He picked up the plate from the table. "Can you hold it yourself?"

"Don't think so," she admitted hoarsely, fingers trembling as she raised her hands towards her face.

"Hey, don't worry beautiful: I won't let a lady starve. Let me help you sit up and I'll feed you myself," Sanji said warmly. He would do anything for a damsel in distress, and having a starving, helpless damsel in his care spurred all his chivalrous instincts into overdrive. "Then when you're feeling better I'll sort out a bath for you. A lady should be pampered after such an ordeal."

"That sounds wonderful," she admitted as he shifted her into a sitting position. "Can you tell me how I ended up here?"

So Sanji told his lady guest about the battle between Don Krieg and the Baratie as he carefully fed her the meal he'd prepared with his own hands and watched her regain colour and weight before his eyes in a way that seemed utterly miraculous. When he found her she'd been skinny and emaciated, but now she had mature feminine curves that were a delight to the eye and her skin glowed. Really glowed.

"You are glowing with health, mellorine!" he gushed, setting the scraped dinner plate aside. "You were beautiful before, but now you look even more stunning!"

She giggled, a much healthier sound than the earlier hoarse chuckle. "You shameless flatterer, you. That was magnificent food Sanji-kun, thank-you." Her warm smile made Sanji melt into a puddle of blissful goo. "Now, you promised me a bath?"

"Certainly, my lovely!" Sanji said, leaping into action. "Let me help you up."

"I can stand on my own now," she assured him, levering herself off of the bed, "but could you carry my case? It has my clothes in."

"Anything for you, mellorine," Sanji assured her honestly.

"Call me Fox, Sanji-kun," she said, reaching out to rest a hand on his shoulder as he picked up the wooden chest she'd been curled over when he found her.

Wrapping his other arm around her shoulders Sanji led the lovely lady Fox to the bathroom, standing guard outside while she bathed so as to be on hand if she needed anything. The blond chef found he couldn't really hold a grudge against that idiot Gin, considering the pirate had left such a beautiful woman in his care.

Being so wrapped up in his guest, Sanji barely noticed that his own injuries didn't really hurt anymore. Had he been paying attention he would have realised that his ribs were no longer broken and that his numerous bone-deep bruises were almost completely healed. However the lack of pain passed the chef by completely as he threw himself into catering to the every whim of the white-haired beauty Gin had left on the Baratie's top deck.

* * *

Fox eventually persuaded Sanji to leave, suggesting he check up on the Luffy the rubber-man and citing her need to sleep. Sanji had no problem giving up his room to her and reluctantly left to tell the shitty geezer about his guest and check up on the crazy guy who had defeated Don Krieg. As he wandered down the corridor he was torn between a floating in a passionate haze at how utterly stunning Fox looked after her bath in a fresh set of clothing and storming along in black rage at what had been done to her face. Don Krieg, disgusting iconoclast that he was, had ripped out a woman's eyes! Seeing her sunken eyelids had made Sanji want to cry. At least the damage to her wrists had not been as bad as it seemed; he had re-bandaged them for her after her bath and they looked like they would heal cleanly.

Luffy seemed fine, if obsessed with recruiting Sanji for his crew. Not that he was going to leave; he owed the shitty geezer too much for that. Zeff had just grunted when Sanji told him about Fox, but the blond doubted the old man would mind hosting her until she was fully recovered. He did wonder how she'd ending up in such a situation though.

However his lovely guest was temporarily driven from his mind when the entire staff of the Baratie not only insulted his cooking but outright _wasted_ it. Then the shitty geezer punched him in the face. Not being able to take it any longer, Sanji stormed out of the dining room.

Sitting with his back to the door and trying to calm down, Sanji was startled by a hand on his shoulder.

"What are you doing out of bed! You need to rest!" he scolded Fox, leaping up and quickly cradling her hands in order to check that she hadn't aggravated her injuries.

"Sorry, Sanji-kun: I'm just hungry," she admitted candidly. "You are a fantastic chef; you do know that, I hope. You've probably ruined my appreciation of anyone else's cooking for the rest of my life."

"I…" Sanji paused as the words being spoken in the dining room reached his ears. "Yes. I know."

Then the panda shark crashed into him, launching him back into the dining room.

* * *

On deciding to leave, Sanji wasn't surprised that Luffy immediately agreed to take him along. What did surprise him was the rubber-man's agreement to take the charming lady Fox along as well when she asked to join them. Her explanation was that her home was on the Grand Line, which was all Luffy needed to hear before loudly agreeing to give her a lift. Sanji didn't mind at all: Fox was lovely to look at and caring for a pretty lady was its own reward.

Yosaku was annoying, but the bounty hunter knew quite a lot about the Grand Line and was the one navigating so Sanji didn't to more than prod at the man. Luffy was mostly oblivious and Fox was asleep in the cabin, so the chef took care not to be too noisy. Disturbing a lady's beauty sleep was not the done thing at all.


	3. Fishy

**Fishy**

Sanji had been more than a little amused by Yosaku's panic when the Sea Cow emerged during dinner, though he was certainly wary of the massive creature. He was also perfectly willing to hand over their dinner to the poor starving beast… at least until it tried to take a bite out of him as well. The furious sea animal looked like it was going to swallow their entire ship and was showing off incredibly impressive teeth when Fox stepped out of the cabin and promptly threw herself at the creature, cooing like a girl over a pet kitten.

"Oh, aren't you adorable!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms as far around the Sea Cow's neck as she could reach. "What's your name, precious?"

The animal calmed a little and mooed at her.

"Mohmoo? What a lovely name!" the blind woman said brightly. "You're such a big, strong boy, aren't you?"

The Sea Cow preened. Sanji stared, in awe of the beauty that had tamed the savage beast. Behind him Luffy went back to wolfing down his dinner.

"Where are you from, gorgeous?" Fox asked, petting the massive animal. Mohmoo lowed at her, dropping his head into the water so she could reach more of him.

"You understand it?" Sanji ventured.

"Mohmoo? Yes, he's such a softie really," Fox replied, scratching the Sea Cow under the chin as he rolled over in the water. "He says he belongs to Arlong. I don't think he'd mind giving us a lift to see his captain, would you Mohmoo sweetie?"

Mohmoo crooned happily, now perfectly docile and willing to allow Yosaku and Luffy climb over him and tie the boat to his horns so he could pull it along. Sanji let them get on with it, preferring to prepare more dishes for Fox to eat and bask in her presence.

"You know, I thought only mermaids could speak with the creatures of the sea," the chef said as he served up another delicacy for his lovely guest. Fox smiled at him, making his head spin:

"I have mermaid blood, Sanji-kun. Oh, is this for me?" She carefully lifted the spoon to her mouth. "Mmmhmm!" The blissful moan made the blond chef weak at the knees. Truly, Fox was a queen among women! So appreciative of his efforts and part mermaid as well! This was heaven!

* * *

Zoro was a little irritated; today had been rather tiresome. First he had been tied to the mast of Johnny's boat by Usopp and abandoned to the mercies of the Arlong Pirates, then Nami had been difficult and complicated. After she left Arlong Park Zoro had waited a while, incapacitated all of the fishmen remaining on the premises then gone looking for Usopp. Unfortunately Usopp had apparently gone looking for him as well and been caught by Arlong and his officers. The swordsman had been hurrying back towards the compound when a boat with Luffy on it flew through the air and crashed into him, further aggravating the injuries Dracule Mihawk had given him.

Then Johnny had run up and declared that Nami had killed Usopp –which Luffy flatly disbelieved– and Nami herself arrived, denied they had ever been comrades and told them all to go away. The newly-arrived cook didn't help by interrupting and trying to flirt with her. When Nami did not deny murdering Usopp the swordsman tried to attack her in revenge, but was attacked himself by dumbass chef who then insulted him about his loss at the hands of the hawk-eyed Shichibukai.

Luffy acted as though she hadn't insulted them at all and fell over in the middle of the road, loudly stating that he was tired and wanted a nap. Zoro groaned in frustration at the idiocy of the captain he had sworn to follow as Nami exploded in fury and marched off.

A giggle from the tree line as the redhead vanished around the corner caught the swordsman's attention.

"Who's there?" he demanded, drawing his sword.

"Just me," said a white-haired girl wearing a flowery blue long-sleeved tunic and plain, darker blue trousers, stepping into view. "I'm Fox, by the way. Luffy agreed to give me a lift onto the Grand Line so I can get home."

"Where's your home anyway, sis?" Johnny asked curiously as she moved closer, graceful despite the blindfold covering her eyes. That was a great training idea right there.

"Sabaody," Fox said, "Where Paradise ends and the New World begins."

"How'd you end up all the way out here then?" Zoro asked, suspicious.

"I was wandering when I fell afoul of Don Krieg," Fox said shortly, "and now I can't see to navigate my way home." She rubbed the blindfold. Zoro felt bad for her; blindness would put a serious crimp in his own vow to become the strongest swordsman in the world, but if Fox was a navigator then she'd just lost her entire life.

* * *

With Luffy dozing in the middle of the road Johnny and Yosaku took the opportunity to say goodbye to Zoro and depart. The swordsman didn't really mind and sat down nearby to wait for Luffy to decide what he was going to do next. Oddly enough Fox decided to sit next to him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"You're a swordsman, right?" Zoro blinked. How the hell had she guessed?

"How'd you know that?"

"You feel like one. It's nice. And rather familiar, too…" she trailed off, her breath evening out as her head slid down his chest into his lap. Zoro would have moved her, except that Sanji looked like he wanted to explode at the injustice of the 'lovely lady' not picking his lap to nod off in and infuriating the blond idiot was kinda fun.

"Do you think Nami really killed Long-nose?" Sanji asked after a while.

"Who knows?" Zoro replied with a sideways smirk. "Maybe after I called her 'small-time' she got so pissed off that she really did kill him."

"Small-time!?" Sanji lashed out with a foot at Zoro's head. "Nami's breasts aren't small time!"

Zoro raised his sheathed sword to parry, snarling "is that all you think about" but before the blow could connect Usopp appeared between them and took the hit.

"Eh." Sanji sounded a little embarrassed.

"Did you kill him?" came the curious voice of Fox as she levered herself out of Zoro's lap with a yawn.

* * *

Sanji was a little offended at Fox' recent behaviour; throwing herself all over the shitty swordsman like that! It wasn't like the green-haired idiot had even the slightest appreciation of her beauty, yet she leant her elbow against his shoulder when Nami's lovely sister came down the road to talk to them, acting as if she'd known Zoro all her life. Worse still, when the swordsman sprawled out under a tree and fell asleep when Nojiko agreed to tell them about Nami, Fox flopped across his lap, snuggled her head under his chin and followed him into dreamland! Why couldn't she cuddle up to him like that?

To take his mind off the injustice of it all, Sanji paid close attention to the story of how Nami had joined the Arlong Pirates, studiously ignoring the perfectly synchronised deep, even breathing of the green- and white-haired members of his new crew.

However in the back of his mind, at a safe distance from his libido, the chef had a tally sheet of all the odd things about Fox he had noticed so far, which were painting a rather intriguing picture. Sanji liked puzzles and conundrums, especially when he managed to solve them before anyone else, and Fox was a really fantastic one. Her gender and beauty were just the icing on the cake.

* * *

"Arlong?" The soft, feminine voice was surprisingly carrying, drawing the attention of all the humans and fishmen present. "Formerly of the Sun Pirates?"

"Who might you be, little human?" Arlong snarled.

Fox's face twisted into a distinctly bitter expression. "Not so human as all that, Arlong-san. Ever hear of the Cursed Maiden?"

The saw-nosed fishman paused. "A mermaid's daughter born without a tail due to her father's humanity, then force-fed Devil Fruit on the whim of the nobility, because they _wanted to see what would happen_," he spat.

"Quite," Fox whispered. "I haven't been around fishmen in years; it feels rather nostalgic to be among such company once more."

"You're the Cursed Maiden? The Storm's Daughter?" A fishman with fins on his elbows asked.

"You know mother?" Fox asked, cocking her head sideways. "Wait… Kuro'obi, right? I remember you."

Kuro'obi blinked. "You're Pearl's little Fox-chan? What happened to your hair?"

Fox grimaced. "Devil Fruit happened. Not being able to swim almost killed me; my hair turning white barely registered."

"And your eyes?" the muscular fishman inquired, muscles flexing as he noticed the blindfold.

"I ran afoul of Don Krieg and a pair of Seastone cuffs. Don't worry though; I'll be well again soon enough," Fox said lightly.

"Why are you here, Cursed Maiden?" Arlong asked.

"Well the guy who just punched you in the face agreed to give me a lift back home to the Grand Line, so I'm tagging along with his crew until he keeps that promise," Fox said, stepping past Sanji to pat Kuro'obi's elbow. "If you end up killing them, could you organise a lift for me, Captain?"

"Easily," Arlong shrugged, "now get out of the way."

"Thank-you," Fox said with a polite bow before allowing the large ray fishman to lead her to the opposite side of the compound from the brewing fight. "And it is good to see you again Kuro'obi-san; is there anything you'd like me to convey home on your behalf?"

Sanji tuned out the rest of Fox' conversation with her escort, turning his attention back to Arlong and the upcoming fight. He knew she was secretly cheering for them; he'd heard that 'if'. Her manners were truly exquisite, to be so gracious to such uncouth brutes as these that had made the delightful Nami cry.


	4. Devil

**Devil**

After their victory at Arlong Park, Zoro had been accosted by Fox and half-carried back to Cocoyashi village. He hadn't fought her, partly because she was crew and had proved it by not lifting a finger to stop them beating up people she knew, but mostly because his reopened wounds really, really hurt. Well, they had really, really hurt but somehow Fox' hand on his chest was numbing the pain enough for him to be able to walk despite the adrenaline from the fight having worn off. He was more curious about how exactly the blind woman could possibly know where she was going and not trip over things.

"I'm sure you remember that I am a Devil Fruit User, Roronoa Zoro?" Fox said as she dragged the swordsman into the village doctor's surgery.

"You did mention it," Zoro grunted.

"My ability enables me to bestow healing, among other things," she said as she strong-armed him onto the bed in the back room, "so lie down and take it like a man." She glared at him as he tried to prevent her from stealing his shirt, "Or do you want to be crippled for life?"

Zoro surrendered. He was going to be the strongest swordsman in the world; he could handle a little indignity if it meant he would recover faster than the two years the doctor who'd looked at him before Fox dragged him away had said was standard.

"Good." Fox placed his shirt on the chair and turned her back. "Strip."

"Wha?!"

"You can keep your underwear," the white-haired blind woman said in the tones of one granting a major concession as she locked the door of the room and closed the window shutters, "but I need to be able to touch your wounds in order to treat them."

Zoro stripped quickly, his boots falling to the ground and his trousers joining the shirt on the chair before he lay back down on the bed and pulled the blanket over his legs. Never mind that she was blind; he didn't feel comfortable being practically naked in a locked room with a woman he barely knew.

At least she hadn't tried to take his sword away.

* * *

Five minutes later Zoro was red-faced and acutely embarrassed: Fox had removed her shoes and shirt and was kneeling on the bed in trousers and a bikini top, slowly running glowing hands over his legs. He could actually feel the glow; it was like warm water that washed away all the aches and pains he'd been feeling, soothing bruises and closing wounds. The green-haired swordsman was doing his best to look away from her, not wanting to be accused of looking down her cleavage, but the slow, thorough way she was running her hands up past his knees was sending his brain into the gutter no matter how hard he tried to distract himself.

"What the hell are you doing?!"

"Checking for damage, reinforcing muscle tissue and ensuring that all these scars you've accumulated don't reduce your mobility," Fox said absently, leaning back on her knees and arching her back like a cat. Zoro couldn't stop his eyes from following the way the movement made her chest bounce, then blushed and looked away as soon as he realised what he was doing.

"Now that I'm sure your legs are fine," she crawled up his body and settled down with her knees on either side of his hips, "I can get to work on your torso. Who did this to you anyway?"

Zoro watched as she carefully held her hands slightly above the surface of his injuries and shivered as he felt his muscles reattaching themselves together. "Dracule Mihawk."

Fox' head shot up. "Hawk-eyes? The Shichibukai?" Her hands were perfectly steady, which was a stark contrast to the urgency of her tone.

"Yes?" Zoro wondered what the fuss was about.

"How are you still alive?"

The swordsman smiled at the memory. "He told me to surpass him; that he would stand at the top of the world and wait for me. Ow!" a sudden flash of pain made him cringe.

"Oh?" Zoro suddenly did not like Fox' tone. There was a curious lilting edge to it, suggesting things that sent his instincts jangling as her hands moved further up his chest. "So you have his approval, Roronoa Zoro. That has to be a first."

"What do you mean, a first?"

Fox' left hand continued up the gash past his heart towards his shoulder while her right remained over his heart. "I don't believe any swordsman on the planet has ever gained Dracule Mihawk's approval, never mind that he basically told you he wouldn't mind being beaten by you someday."

Zoro hadn't thought to phrase it quite like that.

"I suppose you'll want to keep the scar then," Fox continued, hands drifting back to the middle of the now closed wound.

"Yes," Zoro rasped. Being healed felt really, really strange and completely unlike any other sensation he'd ever experienced. It was tingly and sore at the same time as feeling warm and pleasant and relaxing; he didn't like the contradiction and didn't know how to react to it.

"This will probably feel very, very strange," she warned him before placing her hands side by side at the middle of the almost healed gash and firmly moved them apart in opposite directions.

Zoro almost swallowed his tongue. Strange was an understatement: it felt like all his nerve endings had fired at once, burying him under a tidal wave of hot-cold-wet-dry-rough-smooth-pain-pleasure that ripped a moan from his throat and rolled his eyes into the back of his head. The eternal moment finally passed, leaving him sweating and panting for breath with his hands fisted in the sheets.

* * *

"Better?" Zoro could hear the mirth in Fox's voice; he bet she'd known _exactly_ what that would do to him. He opened his eyes so he could glare at her and instinctively cringed back into the pillow as a familiar pair of eyes looked back at him.

"Wha?!" it was more of a squeak than anything else. Fox grinned down at him, sharp jaw, tousled hair, straight nose and fierce, golden eyes completing a picture that made Zoro want to either punch her or run away as fast as he could. There was no way on earth Fox _wasn't_ closely related to Mihawk.

"So, let's do this properly," Fox drawled, her voice no longer soft and demure but an alto echo of the World's Strongest Swordsman. "My name is Dracule Lisska, but my friends call me Fox. It's a pleasure to meet you, Roronoa Zoro."

* * *

Mwahahahahar!


	5. Nerves

**Nerves **

Meeting the white-haired, gold-eyed woman at the dinner table had been an unpleasant surprise for Nami; she'd seen the other woman hanging all over Zoro at the party to celebrate Arlong's defeat but hadn't realised that she was another member of Luffy's crew. Nami was also highly suspicious of the way this stranger was always touching the green-haired swordsman: Zoro was not remotely touchy-feely yet he tolerated the constant invasion of his personal space as if it was normal.

"Do you two know each-other?" the navigator eventually asked as Sanji collected the scraped dishes for washing up, taking note of the chef's irritation whenever his visible eye fell on the couple.

"Zoro and I?" the stranger asked. "Not really."

"Then why are you all over him like that?"

The white-haired woman in the orange dress blinked and looked down at herself, taking in her own right hand holding onto the swordsman's shoulder and the lack of space between their bodies. "Oh. Sorry Zoro; I didn't mean to invade your space like that."

"S'fine," the swordsman muttered, getting to his feet and lifting the woman to hers before leaving the main room. Nami stared after him for a second, then turned back to the stranger.

"Who are you anyway?"

The woman smiled, golden eyes curving up into vulpine slits. "Fox."

"Fox lives on the Grand Line, so we're taking her home!" Luffy chirped, his habitual smile firmly in place.

"Really?" Nami was a little wary of the older woman, but prepared to let things slide if it meant gaining information. "What do you do for a living, Fox?"

Fox smiled, absent-mindedly grabbing a damp cloth and wiping down the table. "Whatever really; it pays to be versatile on the Grand Line. My Devil Fruit enables me to heal, which is always in demand, and I can sew, cook and navigate a bit as well. Though my cooking cannot begin to compare to Sanji's," she added with a warm smile to the blond chef. "Seriously, I may have to join the crew just so I can go on eating your food."

"You're too kind, Fox-chan!" Sanji swooned, hearts in his eyes.

* * *

The next morning Nami was even more suspicious of their passenger: Fox had not joined the navigator in the girls' cabin for the night. The redhead had quietly gone looking for the older woman but hadn't found her anywhere, not in the lounge, storage room or armoury, on deck or even in the bathroom! Usopp had been in the crows' nest, so she couldn't be there. However at breakfast Fox appeared as if out of nowhere, sat at the table next to Zoro and ate the meal Sanji provided as if nothing strange was going on at all.

"Where did you sleep last night Fox?" she asked.

"The armoury," Fox said, glancing at the navigator briefly before returning her attention to her food and fending off Luffy's extended reach with a spoon. "Zoro helped me put together some bedding before turning in."

There was a lull as both she and Sanji paused between mouthfuls to stare at the green-haired swordsman, who kept his own eyes firmly on his meal. Nami stared at the strange picture the two of them made: the stoic, grumpy green-haired swordsman and the open, smiling white-haired woman sitting so close to each-other Fox was practically in Zoro's lap despite being noticeably taller than him.

Stop crowding Fox-chan, marimo!" Sanji said abruptly, setting his cutlery on his empty plate. Zoro glanced up, raised an eyebrow then quickly went back to finishing off his meal.

"I'm not doing anything to her, dumbass cook," the swordsman mumbled around a mouthful of food. Nami finished her own meal and glanced sideways at Sanji, who was swelling in indignation.

"Thank-you for the wonderful meal, Sanji-kun," Fox said before the chef could act on his growing ire. As she walked out of the room her right hand trailed across the back of Zoro's shoulders; the swordsman didn't even react.

Nami hadn't known him for long but she knew that Zoro hated being pushed around, hated being fussed over and did not let people touch him casually. Ever. He was as prickly as a green porcupine.

"Are you two sleeping together?" she asked Zoro. Beside her Sanji choked on nothing and Zoro spat out the food he'd been chewing.

"The hell gave you that idea? No!" he retorted, flushing scarlet and pushing away the remains of his meal. "Are you trying to kill me or something? Just, just _no_. Hell no." He rose to his feet and stalked out of the room, face still red.

Nami frowned as Sanji wheezed next to her and Luffy polished off the remains of Zoro's breakfast, oblivious to the conversation. She knew there was something going on between the two of them; the lack of boundaries and effortless synchrony of their actions betrayed that much. That kind of awareness did not just happen. Luffy either hadn't noticed or didn't care, but Nami couldn't let it slide. For the crew dynamic to have changed so drastically so quickly something important had to have occurred. Something she needed to know.

* * *

By the early afternoon Nami was even more certain something was amiss: While she was sunbathing and Usopp was tinkering on the rear deck, Zoro was lounging on the foredeck with Fox curled up in his lap and her face buried against his chest, fast asleep. Sanji hadn't noticed them yet, being busy defending her orange trees from Luffy's depredations, but when he did there was sure to be an explosion.

She paid the news coo at her elbow for the newspaper, grumbling about the price, and started reading, keeping half an eye on the odd couple at the other end of the Going Merry. The more she watched them the more it creeped her out seeing Zoro accommodate for Fox as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Did her Devil Fruit allow her to brainwash people or something?

Then the words in the paper in front of her really registered and she screeched.

* * *

Zoro was roused from his doze by Nami's outburst, but what really woke him up was the look in Fox' eyes as she lifted her face from the curve of his throat. That bleary-eyed expression of black fury reminded him that Dracule Mihawk had destroyed Don Krieg's fleet for the crime of disturbing his nap and the Shichibukai's daughter seemed to have inherited his dislike of being woken before she was ready. He automatically reached out to stroke her hair:

"You can't kill Nami," he said bluntly; "Luffy won't let you."

Fox leant into his hand, closing her eyes once more. "D'you think he'd let me maim her a little?" She muttered grumpily, relaxing into his touch.

"Probably not," Zoro informed her regretfully. He had not the faintest idea why he felt so comfortable with Fox, how he knew her reactions and moods and didn't mind her flopping all over him at the drop of a hat, but he was a swordsman and he trusted his instincts completely. A few days' worth of almost constant contact had proved said instincts could be relied upon absolutely where Fox was concerned –even if they were practically useless when it came to Nami– so Zoro had deliberately stopped worrying and gone with the flow.

The two of them listened to the conversation drifting down from the rear deck about Luffy's bounty, Fox having planted her forehead back on Zoro's shoulder as the swordsman petted her hair.

"D'you have a bounty Fox?" Zoro asked eventually.

"Not under my real name, but yes," she mumbled.

"How much for?" it was idle curiosity really, but there was nothing wrong with that.

Fox snorted. "You won't believe me."

"Hm?"

"Fine. S'just my first bounty, as they haven't had proof of my doing anything since, but it's 710,000,000 beli-"

"_What?!"_ Zoro hissed, jerking himself upright and pulling her hair so he could look her in the eye. "Seven hundred and ten _million_?! What the hell did you _do?" _

"Er, destroyed one of the Tenryuubito clans?" Fox said sheepishly. "As in, murdered every last man and woman descended from the seventeenth of the Twenty Kings, including one of the Gorosei?" She coughed, looking slightly embarrassed. "I was a bit crazy at the time."

"Are you going to get recognised?" Was what Zoro determined to be the most pressing issue after a short mental break to get his priorities in order.

"No. My bounty poster has me wearing a mask and, as I've said, I've not left any witnesses to what I've been up to since. I always wear the mask when I know I'm heading into a fight and I always wear a disguise for shore leave. Nobody will be coming after Luffy because of my past. Well, not yet. If we get in a real fight on the Grand Line and I need to wear my combat gear then people will work out that the Phantom Fox is travelling with you guys as your captain doesn't seem to like killing very much and won't let me kill eventual witnesses."

Zoro let go of Fox' hair and leant back against the deck to contemplate this new complication.

"The sooner I get off the less likely that is to happen," Fox offered quietly.

Zoro rolled his eyes. "Luffy's kinda protective of his nakama; he may not let you leave." He paused. "Do you actually have anywhere to go?"

"Not really. I've been living out of my ship for the past four years."

"You have a ship?"

"Yep."

"Where is it?"

Fox smirked wickedly. "Around."

"Crew?"

"Just me."

"How the hell can it be 'around' if nobody's steering it?"

Fox batted her eyelashes at him. "It's a secret. Maybe I'll show you someday."

Zoro deduced said secret to be mostly harmless and let it lie, choosing instead to stare over at the horizon. "Hey, I see an island up ahead," he said, raising his voice so the others could hear him over the sound of Luffy's shouts.

"Loguetown," Fox whispered.

* * *

A bit more about Fox.


	6. Subterfuge

**Subterfuge**

Zoro had to admit he was impressed by the disguise Fox had come up with: in a brown wig that barely brushed her shoulders, rectangular, rimless sunglasses tinted grey and wide-brimmed straw hat shading her features she was almost unrecognisable despite not having changed her clothing at all other than adding a yellow, long-sleeved jacket and matching sandals. Luffy didn't recognise her at all at first, but when Fox informed him she was in disguise he instantly invited her to join their crew as 'master of disguise'. Zoro noticed that Fox didn't actually say no, but she didn't say yes either. Instead she thanked Luffy for the offer then latched onto Zoro's arm, smiled winsomely up at him and asked if he would be willing to carry her purchases back to the ship for her, offering to buy him anything he fancied in return. Zoro saw the dumbass chef wilt in misery at not having been asked and smirked.

"Anything? You'd just let him go for broke like that?" Nami complained.

Fox just shrugged. "Money's useless if you can't spend it. Besides, he needs new swords anyway, so."

"You'd just buy them for me?" Zoro asked, not sure how he felt about that.

"You can pay me back if you'd prefer," Fox said agreeably, "but, meh, how to put it…" she paused, tapping her fingers on his arm. "You're a three sword swordsman. It doesn't feel right to have you walking around with just one if it can possibly be helped. Sorry if I can't articulate it better than that."

Zoro grunted. Fox truly was a swordsman's daughter to have picked up on that, but he wanted the swords to be his. "I'll pay you back," he decided. "What do you want to buy?"

Fox beamed at him. "Fabric, thread, yarn, paper, pens and ink, some potted herbs for the kitchen, books, a proper log book and knives."

Zoro blinked at the list. "Knives?" he noted mildly.

"I'm running low on sharps," Fox admitted candidly, "and the ones I have on me are no good for sparring."

Brightening at the prospect of having someone to practice with, even if it wasn't with swords, Zoro let himself be led off into town. Fox had certainly been here before, moving with purpose through the bustling streets. Since she clearly knew what she wanted, it probably wouldn't take her very long to find it.

* * *

Zoro had guessed correctly both that Fox was familiar with Loguetown and that she would not take long to find what she was after; in only slightly more than half an hour he was helping her stow her purchases back on the Going Merry. She had bought an interesting selection of knives and a lot of materials for blade maintenance, as well as a whole lot of other combat tools including caltrops. He had also gotten to see the blades she had claimed were 'no good for sparring' which she had produced from her sleeves for the smith to look over; It turned out they were made from Kairoseki and worth as much as a good sword. Zoro wondered when and where she had retrieved them as she certainly hadn't had them on her back on Orange Island yesterday morning. Kairoseki blades seemed rather risky for a Devil Fruit User to be handling, but he could understand why she had them considering how common Devil Fruit was supposed to be on the Grand Line.

Possibly she had retrieved them from the ship she claimed was 'around', though he'd certainly never seen a hint of it.

Fox' shopping completed they set out for a sword shop, Zoro letting his crewmate take the lead. They hadn't gotten very far when the swordsman heard a commotion. Gently hauling Fox to a halt he turned towards the noise in time to see a burly pair of pirates targeting a lone woman armed with a sword. The woman won the confrontation quite handily, but as soon as it was over she tripped over her own feet and fell on her face right in front of them. Zoro crouched to retrieve the woman's glasses and was fulminated with the embarrassed fighter's resemblance to his late friend, Kuina. Only Fox' hand on his shoulder prevented him from either saying something stupid or running away; instead he let the disguised woman take over the conversation and steer him back towards their destination.

Thankfully Fox did not comment on his sudden dumbness and quietly led him towards a large arms shop they had passed earlier when looking for knives, leaning over to rest her head on his shoulder before letting him take the lead and walk into the store.

* * *

Fox did not participate at all in the conversation that took place in the sword shop other than to radiate extreme disapproval when the owner tried to con Zoro out of the blade he had been given by Kuina's father, though the man was foiled by the bespectacled Kuina look-alike from earlier. Instead she buried her face in his right shoulder, wrapped her left arm around his waist and generally acted like she had no interest in blades at all, though the swordsman could tell she was paying attention the conversation. It had been Fox back on the Merry who advised him to start by looking at the cheapest blades available and then work his way up; that way he would definitely get the best the shop had to offer.

It proved sound advice as he found a high quality cursed blade lurking amongst the cheap swords, a blade called Sandai Kitetsu. Gently slipping out of Fox's grip Zoro ignored the panic of the shop owner and the girl with the glasses, tossed the sword in the air and held out one arm, closing his eyes. If he lost his arm, he would take it as a sign that he would never amount to much of a swordsman anyway. The glimpse he had caught of Fox's face as he closed his eyes reassured him that she would not step in save to prevent him from bleeding to death, her cool serenity as indifferent as death itself.

The sword fell, the blunt edge of the katana briefly caressing his arm before the blade plunged hilt-deep into the floor.

"I'll take it!" Zoro said fiercely, retrieving the Sandai Kitetsu from the floor. "Hey, you," he added to the strange girl as Fox stepped closer and squeezed his shoulder in acknowledgement of his good fortune, "pick out one more sword for me." It proved unnecessary however as the shop owner staggered off to retrieve the best sword in the store and insisted Zoro accept both it and the Sandai Kitetsu free of charge. Recognising that to refuse would be disrespectful, Zoro accepted gracefully and left the store, right arm wrapped around Fox' waist. He felt much better now he was properly armed again.

"How much money did you have anyway?" he murmured in his crewmate's ear.

"Enough to buy both those swords at full price and still have enough left for another high-quality weapon," Fox replied quietly, sounding deeply amused. "You must certainly be destined to be a great swordsman for Fate to take such lengths to provide you with worthy blades."

Zoro chuckled, tightening his grip on his companion as they wandered around the town taking in the sights. The future looked very bright indeed right now.

* * *

After wandering around for a while Zoro noticed that the crowds were thinning out. Shortly after that they bumped into Nami, Sanji and Usopp in the town square, though he couldn't see Luffy anywhere.

"Look up," Fox muttered, her voice taking on a hard yet faintly lyrical cadence that echoed her father's. Zoro did so.

"Why the hell is he on the execution stand!" the swordsman bellowed. Fox tapped his shoulder.

"I'll head back to the Merry," she whispered in his ear. "Don't let our captain lose his head."

Zoro nodded, feeling her slip away behind him. Considering her real identity and her frankly ridiculous bounty, he'd much rather Fox did not take part in the coming fight. They didn't need the Marines spotting her on top of everything else.

* * *

The Revolutionary Dragon watched Dracule Mihawk's daughter leap lightly from rooftop to rooftop, letting the wind carry her across the wider gaps between buildings. She would be just fine; his son was fortunate to find such an accomplished woman for his crew.

Though he did wonder how long the swordsman Roronoa Zoro would survive once Hawk-Eyes leant his precious daughter had set her sights on the former pirate hunter…


	7. Mask

**Mask**

Zoro hadn't shown it, but he'd been worried when Fox didn't reappear alongside Luffy inside the whale's stomach. She'd admitted to him while they were steering up Reverse Mountain that she could breathe just fine underwater –a perk of being a mermaid's daughter that eating Devil Fruit hadn't taken away– but she still sank like a stone. He knew she wasn't dead, though he wasn't looking forward to having to tell the rest of the crew what had happened to her.

He was therefore pleasantly surprised when, on emerging from the Whale with the assistance of Dr. Crocus, Fox was sitting on the shoreline waiting for them.

"Where were you?" Luffy asked as soon as he spotted her.

I fell overboard when Laboon swallowed the Going Merry," Fox said. "However I washed up here, so no harm done."

"You know the whale's name?" Nami asked.

Fox smiled. "I sailed the Grand Line for four years before arriving in East Blue, Nami-chan. Of course I know his name." Her smile turned wicked. "I know more about navigating the Grand Line than most, actually. I'm shocked you haven't tried to pick my brain yet."

Nami spluttered.

* * *

After Luffy's brief battle against the island whale Fox used her Devil Fruit Ability to reattach the Merry's mainmast without leaving so much as a join, which impressed Usopp very much. The long-nosed sniper had been ordered to put it back together despite not being a shipwright and had been very depressed about it. Zoro had napped, at least until Nami's shrieking roused him –again– and he looked up at the lighthouse to see what the fuss was about.

"This compass!" Nami was wailing. "It's broken! It's pointing all over the place!"

Zoro noticed Fox standing off to one side of the deck and giggling behind her hand, so he moved quietly over to stand next to her.

"You knew this would happen?"

She nodded as on the cliff top Dr. Crocus lectured the abashed navigator about why compasses were useless on the Grand Line. "Nami's got a true instinct for navigation," Fox whispered between giggles, "but she's so ignorant it's ridiculous. She doesn't even realise how ignorant she is!"

"Heh," it was pretty funny, considering how Nami hated to be contradicted about anything. "You're better then?"

Fox shrugged. "I'm not the natural she is, but I've more practice and understanding. Oh, and charts. Lots of charts, mostly ones I've made."

"On your ship."

"Yep."

"Which is…"

"Around."

"Of course." Zoro realised that he actually enjoyed these little verbal spars with his most enigmatic nakama. She wasn't a coward like Usopp, dense like Luffy, volatile like Nami or a dumbass like Sanji. Instead she was very sharp and a bit quirky, but steady as a rock when it mattered. She also didn't mind silence, which was a massive plus on the Merry.

* * *

Zoro did not trust the passengers Luffy had picked up at all, partly because they set his nerves on edge, but mostly because their presence had prompted Fox to retrieve her sunglasses and a scarf to wrap around her head before the odd duo regained consciousness. He knew her instincts were sharper than his due to her wider range of experiences and her resuming her disguise indicated they were not to be trusted. However as his captain had accepted them there was nothing he could do except wait, though their names did set off alarm bells in the back of his mind for some reason.

The sighting of Whiskey Peak however meant he had to put his concerns aside for a little while. Not long though, as the townspeople's' behaviour was deeply, deeply suspect. Fox had vanished below deck as soon as the cheering started, whispering in the swordsman's ear as she passed that she would catch up with the rest of the crew once things had quieted down.

As Nami was the only member of the crew who seemed to be treating the situation with the suspicion it deserved, Zoro quietly informed the redhead of Fox' words before allowing himself to be led off towards the party.

On the far side of the Going Merry, out of sight of the town, a wooden deck surfaced from the river. Fox slipped silently out of one of the cannon hatches onto the damp wood, opened a hatch in the otherwise featureless boards and dropped inside. The hatch closed and the deck sunk beneath the waves once more.

* * *

As Zoro confronted the forces of the Baroque Works head-on, he noticed a white shadow flitting between buildings at the back of the crowd. None of the bounty hunters had noticed it yet, mainly because it was picking people off one at a time and hiding the bodies between kills. Considering his battle partner's preference for back alleys and secrecy, the green-haired swordsman decided not to be too concerned about stealth.

Just as well, as his temporary hiding spot had just been discovered. Oh, well: being the centre of attention was rather fun. Even though there was a real chance that the longer he prolonged the fight, the fewer opponents he would have by the time they cornered him. He could already see the gaps in their ranks, gaps they were too busy chasing him to notice. Fox was good.

In fact, the next time he paused for breath all that was left of the hundred or so bounty hunters in Whiskey Peak were three of the four Frontier Agents of the organisation. Considering he'd only taken out sixty people at most, it was kinda pathetic that they hadn't noticed he wasn't their only opponent. Then again, Fox was really, _really_ good. Even he hadn't seen her again after that first time, which had probably been on purpose.

Sadly Nami showed up after he'd beaten the Frontier Agents and hidden the still-unconscious Luffy from the newly-arrived Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine's Day, which meant Fox would be sticking to the shadows for a while longer. He had been hoping for a chance to spar against the white-haired woman's alter-ego. Though, if he'd read her right she was probably shadowing the princess Nami was trying to extort a protection fee for. Which was the reason why Zoro actually chased after the blue-haired former Miss Wednesday when Nami asked him to.

Though not before informing the redhead that he was doing it because he wanted to rather than because of anything she happened to say.

* * *

When Zoro got back to the boat Fox was already there, back in her everyday clothing plus sunglasses and petting the large duck belonging to the princess.

"Have a good night?" he asked dryly.

"Very peaceful," Fox told him with a smile. "Oh, and Miss Valentine sadly did not survive her run-in with you and Luffy: she landed on something sharp and bled out."

The swordsman grinned. Oh yeah, Fox was _fantastic_.

* * *

Born killers flirt slightly differently to normal people.


	8. Apart

**Apart **

Fox had not been interested in exploring Little Garden, so she offered to do the laundry instead. Predictably everyone on board immediately took advantage and five minutes later she had the bath full of warm water and was elbow deep in soapsuds. While washing everyone's clothing was something she was keen on –other than in the interests of preserving her sense of smell– she had volunteered in order to get a little time by herself. Living in close quarters with a crew as rowdy as the Straw Hats was very wearing for a loner like herself, even when she was leaning on Zoro's instinctive certainty that no-one on board meant either of them any harm.

She liked Zoro; he was easy to be around. He'd been more damaged than he'd realised after fighting on Orange Island, having torn his diaphragm and been bleeding internally; if she hadn't been there his dream would have reached a premature end. The intensive healing had tied them together in a way she couldn't bring herself to dislike, though she hoped he wouldn't need too much fixing up in the future as the level of intimacy repetitive deep healing brought was rather frightening. She'd gone crazy and murdered all those World Nobles for a reason.

The Devil Fruit she'd eaten gave her an awareness and connection to all forms of life, which was why Kairoseki handcuffs affected her more than normal. It also enabled her to infuse her own life-force into other living or formerly-living things to regenerate and heal damage, at the price of an increased awareness of the being or thing she'd just fixed proportional to the severity of the injury. Fixing scratches and bruises just made a person slightly more prominent on her mental map; bringing a person back from the brink of death forged a tie so strong she and her patient were constantly aware of each-other regardless of distance. The loss of someone she was that close to was devastatingly painful and made her lose what mental equilibrium she had until she healed again. Not that it made her insane; rather it turned her into a cold-blooded sociopath, which apparently was worse.

Fox therefore made an effort not to disclose quite how potent her abilities really were so as to avoid forming bonds with people. She also cultivated other skills so she did not have to resort to healing to earn a living. It was ironic really that her Devil Fruit Ability was all about connecting to life in all its forms while her greatest natural talent lay in assassination and its related disciplines.

She ignored the commotion happening on deck; if she was needed they'd call for her.

* * *

After finishing the laundry and hanging it from the rigging to dry, Fox dropped overboard onto the deck of her private craft: she had never been to Little Garden before and intended to survey it properly. She wasn't much of a navigator, but her Devil Fruit Ability enabled her to draw highly accurate topographic maps. Visiting new islands and mapping them was one of her hobbies, one that went well with her main earner: making Eternal Poses.

Eternal Poses were tricky to make, as their needles had to be manufactured from the mineral the island it pointed to was made of and then converted without losing its magnetic frequency. They also had to be made within the magnetic field of that same island. As a result making Eternal Poses was finicky, challenging and expensive. Fox had a knack for it which, when combined with her talent for drawing and profound awareness of her environment, enabled her to navigate anywhere in the Blues and the Grand Line using the Eternal Pose of her choice and its attendant charts. Just as a compass always pointed north in the Blues, an Eternal Pose always pointed to a single island anywhere in the world. It was therefore possible to navigate the entire Blue Sea with a single Pose so long as you had an accurate watch and good charts.

Eternal Poses also sold well, so Fox was never short of money. An Eternal Pose to Little Garden would be more of a novelty item than anything else, but that didn't mean it wouldn't sell. Quite the contrary in fact; a Little Garden Eternal Pose would be a rare treasure.

Guiding her unique undersea craft around the island with her Devil Fruit Powers, Fox set about mapping the undersea landscape and looking for an outcropping of suitable ferrimagnetic rock to mine for her sample.

Drawing the charts took very little time and she was fortunate enough to find a good mineral sample at the edge of the volcanic outcropping on one end of the island, so after a quick lunch Fox set about the challenge of making a Pose needle. She had no shortage of tempered glass globes and stands, so making the needle and assembling the parts would provide her with a finished piece.

* * *

Several hours' later Fox returned to the Going Merry, tired but triumphant. Her first needle had been a dud, but the second one worked perfectly and the finished Eternal Pose was sitting in a neat slot on her shelves, labelled and ready to sell. Her chart of Paradise had also been updated to include Little Garden's position relative to the other islands on the Grand Line and the larger topographic map was stowed safely with the others. Feeling cheerful and accomplished, Fox checked no-one was currently on board, scrambled out of her submersible and hid it underneath the charming caravel that was gradually becoming a second home to her. Then she set about taking down the dry laundry and sorting it into piles so it could be returned to the appropriate people.

Her good cheer however did not last as she sensed the crew returning; Zoro definitely had serious injuries. Whipping out her sunglasses and headscarf Fox ensured her hair and eyes were hidden then took charge as soon as everyone came into view. Predictably, Zoro and Sanji were arguing.

"Right, who's injured?" she asked briskly. "And no lying; I can tell when you lie."

"I'm not feeling very well," Usopp admitted.

"Just a few superficial burns and bruises," Vivi claimed.

"Same as Vivi," Nami said frankly.

"I'm fine!" Luffy grinned.

"I'm unharmed, Fox-chan," Sanji assured her with a smile.

Zoro wouldn't look her in the eye.

"Right. Nami and Vivi, I'll hunt you down when I've looked at the boys. Sanji, you do whatever. Usopp, sit down until I've looked at you. Luffy, get over here so I can check you really are okay; you don't want me to worry, do you?" She cajoled. Luffy instantly bounced over. "Oh, and Zoro?" she lowered her sunglasses and _glared_. "**Sit**."

Zoro sat. Fox pushed the tinted lenses back up her nose, turned back to her captain and placed glowing hands on his shoulders.

"You are not fine, Luffy, but being a rubber man means that at least you haven't broken anything," she sighed, letting her power sooth the burns, scrapes and bruises. "Better?"

"Wow, you're amazing, Fox!" Luffy shouted, flexing his healed arms. "Please join my crew? You can be our doctor and master of disguise!"

"I'm afraid I can't be your doctor Luffy, I haven't the training," Fox said regretfully. "Usopp, can you move safely?"

"I'm not sure," the sniper said nervously.

"I'll come up there and examine you then."

Usopp had some very nasty bruises and burns, not to mention several cracked bones, but nothing that would have killed or crippled him if left untreated. Once she released him the long-nose went to help Sanji cut up and stow the meat from the two dinosaurs the swordsman and the chef had killed. Fox then turned her attention to Zoro, who hadn't moved.

"Well, let's see what you've done to yourself this time," she sighed, having noticed the bleeding wounds on his legs.

Five seconds later Fox removed her hands from his face and wacked the back of his head with her palm. "Moron!"

"Hey!"

"Do you actually want to be crippled for life? What did you try to cut your feet off for?"

"We were trapped!" Zoro protested.

"Then why didn't you call me? I told you my name for a reason, you know?" Fox sighed. "Oh, whatever. Take your boots off so I can do this properly."

"None of the others needed to undress."

"None of the others were this badly damaged. Or do you want to lose half of the nerve and muscle function in your lower legs?"

Zoro obediently removed his boots and Fox carefully ran glowing hands over the injuries.

"Sorry," the swordsman muttered. Fox nodded acceptance of the apology.

"Forgiven; you need to take better care of yourself if you're serious about your dream," she said as she felt muscles and nerves reconnect under her fingers. "As it is you'll have to baby your legs for a few days: just gentle stretches and flexibility exercises today and tomorrow, normal training the day after. Nothing strenuous for at least three days, you understand? Or I'll tie you down and _make_ you rest."

Zoro grunted, pulled his boots back on and went to help get the Merry ready to sail. Fox silently shook her head at the stubborn bullheadedness of the male gender and went looking for the princess of Alabasta.

* * *

A little more background.


	9. Sickness

**Sickness **

After fixing up everyone's injuries Sanji let Fox nap in the kitchen while they left Little Garden, leaving a plate of select treats next to her while he prepared some nibbles for the men and some special delicacies for Nami and Vivi, who were both out on deck. He had seen the white-haired woman wear herself out healing the shitty moss-head's injuries, so the precious lady was more than deserving of a little rest. She woke up just as he had finished cooking the mundane stuff.

"Are these for me?" she asked, pointing at the large plate beside her.

"Of course, Fox-chan!" he exclaimed. "A treasure such as you deserves only the very best."

Fox put one in her mouth and Sanji's efforts were rewarded with a blissful moan. The white-haired woman actually closed her eyes as she savoured the treat. "Mmmm! How is even possible to make food taste this good?"

"Anything for you, Fox-chan!" Sanji cooed, fluttering around her in transports of delight. This was why he'd become a chef; so he could bring joy to beautiful women.

Fox slowly devoured the plate of goodies he'd made for her as he set about making petit fours for the two girls on deck, her happy moans and delighted humming as she savoured her food a perfect accompaniment to his efforts. Once she had finished she slumped back against the wall.

"I suggest you find somewhere more out of the way to nap in, Fox-chan," Sanji recommended, "as Luffy is going to notice I've been cooking soon and come in for his share."

"Good point," Fox agreed, levering herself to her feet and rolling her shoulders with a yawn. "I'll be in the forward cannon deck if anyone needs me." She stumbled out of the kitchen. Sanji hoped she wouldn't be needed; she was an absolute bear first thing in the morning and even worse if you woke her when she was napping. The chef would never admit it, but he was grateful that the shitty swordsman could calm her down when that happened. If looks could kill…

* * *

When Vivi exclaimed that Nami had collapsed Sanji knew what to do: wake Fox up. She was the only one other than Nami who knew anything about medical matters and she could heal, so she was their best bet. Unfortunately, waking Fox up was about as safe as shooting a cannonball at a Sea King as it produced similar results.

"Fox is asleep, marimo," he said aloud as Zoro picked up Nami from the deck. The swordsman paused for a moment, then handed the navigator to the chef.

"I'll wake her up, dumbass cook," Zoro grumbled, walking towards the forward cannon deck. Sanji did not respond to the insult, sensible of the sacrifice the mossball was making on their behalf. As he descended the stairs with Nami in his arms there was a grunt, a thud and a loud bang that indicated someone had just been thrown into a wall. Behind him, Vivi winced.

"What just happened?" she asked.

"Ah, Vivi-chan, Fox-chan dislikes being woken from her beauty sleep," Sanji explained. "She is also very energetic in expressing said dislike."

"Meaning she'll punt you into the furthest wall, pick up a knife and threaten to skin you alive," Usopp muttered as he helped Vivi set out the bed in the women's quarters for Nami to lie on.

"Or tie you in knots around the cannons," Luffy added cheerfully. Sanji hadn't witnessed that one. Perhaps it had been that time the captain had been late to lunch…

Laying Nami down on the bed, Sanji left the navigator in Vivi's care while he hurried back up to the kitchen to prepare some food. Food always made Fox less homicidal. He was however waylaid just outside the kitchen by a rumpled and very grumpy white-haired woman who looked half-an-inch away from a killing spree.

"What's wrong with Nami?" she demanded.

"We don't really know yet, Fox," he admitted carefully.

Fox growled. "Symptoms?"

"Very high fever?"

Fox growled again, stomped over to the side of the Merry and threw herself off. Sanji dashed to the edge of the ship just in time to see the woman vanish down a hatch in a wooden deck floating barely above sea level.

"That must be her ship," came Zoro's voice from behind him.

"Ship?" Sanji turned. "She has a-" he stopped, taking in the marimo's black eye and slight limp. The swordsman scowled.

"What's your problem, shitty cook?"

"Sanji!" Fox' sharp tones rose from the floating deck. "Take this, will you?"

The chef sneered at the swordsman then leant over the side of the Merry to accept the large wooden case Fox had hauled up through the hatch. Both men watched with interest as Fox closed the hatch and jumped back on board. The deck promptly sank beneath the waves once more.

"Your ship?" Zoro said.

"I did say it was around," Fox muttered, grabbing the case from Sanji's hand and stomping down the steps towards the women's quarters.

Down below it was clear that Nami was very sick indeed.

"Is Nami going to die?" Sanji whimpered to Vivi as Fox leant over the unconscious navigator, her examination punctuated with a steady stream of quiet profanity. While Vivi explained the health implications of deciding to sail the Grand Line Sanji kept his eyes on the only person on board with any medical experience whatsoever. He really hoped Fox could do something.

"Well?" he asked eventually.

Fox growled. "She's sick; a tropical fever of some kind rather than a climate-induced one. She probably caught it on Little Garden." The white-haired woman seemed frustrated. "I can mend broken bones, close bleeding wounds and regenerate organ damage but I can't even cure a common cold! This is completely outside my abilities."

"Oh, I'm sure she'll get better if she just eats some meat!" Luffy said brightly, prompting Sanji to explain the difference between nursing and actually curing someone.

"If you get me a few glasses and some fresh water I can grow some suitable herbs for a febrifuge," Fox offered as the chef finished his explanation, "but I'll also need some nutritious food, preferably something bland and quick to prepare, so I can get to work quickly. Nami will need broth to replace the fluids she's sweating out but nothing else. It's actually dangerous to eat too much when you're feverish, as it distracts the body from fighting off the illness." She opened her case. "I also have some reasonably fresh willow bark you can make into tea for her, which should help."

Given something to do that might actually be helpful, the chef leapt into action.

* * *

Sanji returned below with the willow bark tea, a bowl of sweetened porridge and a jug of water to the sound of an argument going on between Nami, Vivi and Luffy over a newspaper. Fox interrupted the discussion as soon as she spotted him.

"Nami, drink this," she ordered briskly, handing the navigator the teacup, "and put on something warm. Just because you feel warm right now doesn't mean you can't catch a chill. The tea won't taste remotely good but it'll bring your fever down."

Nami obediently threw the tea down her throat and made a face. "Bleh. That's the nastiest thing you've ever made me, Sanji." She put the cup down. "Thanks for worrying about me."

As she walked out of the cabin Sanji handed Fox the porridge and water jug. "Is she really alright?" he asked.

Fox snorted. "Not even close. Usopp, follow her out so there's someone to catch her when she keels over, please?" the sniper left the room. "Luffy, whatever Nami says she needs to get to a doctor as quickly as possible. Tropical fevers are very dangerous; it really could kill her."

"Really?" Luffy wasn't smiling anymore.

"Yes, especially since I don't have the training to determine which type of fever it is, so I can't administer a proper cure. I can pour fever reducers down her neck for a few days and make sure she drinks enough broth to avoid dehydration, but that'll just keep her alive a little longer. I can't fix her." Luffy nodded seriously and hurried up on deck.

"Can I help at all?" Sanji asked.

"Make sure everyone remembers to eat and sleep, make broth for me and Vivi to pour down Nami's throat and keep the noise down," Fox requested before starting her porridge. "Oh, and make sure Zoro never, ever gets left in charge of our heading," she added at angry voices drifted down from the deck. "He can get lost on a straight road so I hate to think where we'd end up sailing to."

Sanji hurried up on deck to help change their course as Zoro shouted down Nami's instructions, making sure not to step on Vivi who was still kneeling on the cabin floor, staring at the newspaper.

* * *

After their close call with the cyclone Nami collapsed again and was hurried back to bed. Sanji left Usopp in charge of navigating after they had determined which direction was south –Fox helped– all but forced Vivi and Luffy to get some sleep and left the swordsman to keep an eye on the ship's healer, who was growing plants from seed in the water jug with her Devil Fruit Powers. The subtle but steady drop in air temperature prompted the chef to cook warming winter meals to keep everyone's strength up in addition to the broth for Nami.

As he was descending the stairs with the food he heard Zoro and Fox talking and their words prompted him to pause just outside the cabin to listen.

"-there is an island we can reach in this direction?" the swordsman asked.

"If our speed and heading remain constant we should reach an island in about two days time," Fox replied. "Hopefully they'll still have a decent doctor living there."

"What's the island called?"

"Haven't the foggiest. I just remember it being cold: very, very cold with lots of snow."

The conversation ended there, so Sanji opened the door and walked in. "Here's your dinner, Fox-chan," he said with a suave smile, "and Nami's broth. Oh and I brought food for the moss-head, too."

"Ero-cook," the swordsman muttered, accepting the tray.

"What about your meal, Sanji?" Fox asked. "You should join us."

"I'll stay on deck with Usopp to help him stay awake," Sanji said. "Remember to sleep, Fox-chan."

"Uh-huh," Fox hummed, her eyes fixed on her work. There were three distinct baby plants sticking out of the jug now. Zoro rolled his eyes, scooped up some of her meal with a spoon and shoved it in her partly open mouth.

"Eat your dinner, snowball."

Fox frowned at the swordsman, but chewed and swallowed the food. "I'm not-" the swordsman smirked, having shoved another spoonful into her mouth while she was trying to talk. Fox put the plants aside, snatched both plate and spoon from his hands and set about eating properly.

Sanji left, pondering as he did so the peculiar relationship shared by the two individuals watching over the navigator and Fox' familiarity with the Grand Line. Surely Nami would have asked Fox for all the details she could get? And considering Fox had a ship of her own, surely she had charts as well?

* * *

Sanji is Sanji, and nowhere near as idiotic as he sometimes seems.


	10. Ahead

**Ahead**

Fox slept through the boarding of the Merry by the crew of the submersible pirate ship due to having been up half the night painstakingly coaxing the herbs into growing large enough to harvest. Zoro was silently thankful that she had not woken up, if only so as to spare those members of his crew not yet in the know the traumatic bloodbath that would have ensured had Fox arrived on deck to find legitimate targets on board. She roused herself around noon, ate a truly massive lunch then stumbled out on deck to mend the places where the submersible's captain, Walpol, had taken a bite out of the ship. Sanji had been concerned she might exhaust herself but Fox had waved off the dumbass chef's concerns.

"The plants were difficult because I was growing them for their chemical properties, so I had to monitor them closely and ensure the levels of antipyretic in their leaves were at the appropriate level," she explained as the Going Merry's rail regenerated before their eyes. ""The railing just has to be strong and isn't even properly alive, so it's almost as easy as growing hair."

She had then prepared another dose of fever reducer for Nami, tipped it down the unresponsive navigator's throat and fallen back into bed, grumbling all the while about the cold.

* * *

The next morning however she had been back to normal, if very warmly dressed, and had taken over watching the Log Pose when Sanji sighted land. However as they approached the island Fox took Vivi to one side for a talk. Zoro shamelessly eavesdropped, as did Luffy.

"I was wondering if you had any messages you would like me to carry to Alabasta, princess Vivi," Fox said. "I was thinking of travelling on ahead to scout out the lay of the land and purchase supplies, to prevent any more time being lost. I'm sure Luffy wouldn't mind, would you captain?" she finished, looking up at where Luffy was hanging over the rail.

"I don't mind a bit!" Luffy agreed. "In fact, as my master of disguise, going on ahead is part of your job!"

"So I'm part of your crew now, am I?" Fox inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Yep! Shishishishi!" Luffy laughed.

Fox sighed. "Well, I suppose resistance is useless. Any letters you'd like me to deliver princess? And I'd better get a shopping list from Sanji so we end up with the right supplies."

"How're you going to navigate, Fox?" Vivi asked. "We only have one Alabasta Eternal Pose. We don't even have another boat."

Fox smirked. "I have all the Eternal Poses I'll ever need on board my ship, Vivi-chan, and my ship is very close by. Would you like to see it?"

"I would!" Luffy said brightly.

Look over the starboard rail then. That's the right side, Luffy," Fox added when the teen in the straw hat looked left. "It will surface in 3, 2, 1…"

Under the clear, cold sky, a massive head, twice as long as the Going Merry, emerged from the sea.

"Aaaah! Sea King!" Usopp shrieked.

"Actually, that's my boat," Fox said, voice cutting through the sudden panic. "It's in stealth mode."

The head, clearly attached to a very long body, swam closer until it was alongside the ship then sank a little into the water. Rough green and grey skin melted away like mist to reveal a deck Zoro recognised from when Fox had retrieved her medicine chest.

"It doesn't have a mast," Luffy pointed out, "or a flag."

"She doesn't have a flag because I wasn't a pirate until I was added to your crew," Fox said patiently, "and she doesn't have a mast because she swims rather than sails."

"She?" Sanji asked, climbing down the rigging.

"Her name is Swift Hunter," Fox said proudly, "and she's been from Reverse Mountain to Raftel twice."

Zoro whistled. "Some ship."

"Your ship can turn into a Sea King!" Luffy enthused. That's so cool! Can you make the Merry be able to do that?"

"The Going Merry isn't built to withstand the pressures found on the sea bed, Luffy," Fox said. "It would break up. Merry was made to sail; Swift Hunter was built to float. Besides, none of Nami's navigational skills would work under the sea."

"Oh. Okay then," Luffy said. "Are you going now?"

"If Sanji gives me a shopping list and some funds and Vivi has decided whether to give me any letters, then yes," Fox said. "I'll wait for you in Nanohana."

* * *

Most people learnt to recognise their friends by their faces and voices. Since eating Devil Fruit, Dracule Lisska had memorised the life-force signal of every last one of her friends and acquaintances. It had been a training exercise initially, as in the beginning it had been very difficult to pick out human signals from the sheer mass of life-energy given off by plants, animals and other, more basic life-forms. As a result she could now pick a friend out of a crowd from five miles away. Devil Fruit users were also distinct, as their life-force signature was, well, swirly somehow. Give her a line-up of total strangers and she could pick out the Devil Fruit User with her eyes closed. Similarly, she could find actual Devil Fruit with ease, not that she ever cared to.

This was why, when she was still four miles away from Nanohana, she smiled. An old friend was in town.

* * *

A short chapter, but it's more of an interlude than anything else.


	11. Encounter

**Encounter**

Ace was starting to feel bored. He'd been in Nanohana for six days now waiting for his little brother and was starting to run low on funds. He hadn't dined and dashed yet, wanting to keep a low profile as much as possible until it was time for him to move on, but soon he would have to if he wanted a decent meal. Shaking his head, the Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates pushed his empty glass towards the barman, who silently refilled it. It was early in the evening for getting drunk, but after three years sailing the Grand Line as a pirate Ace had a cast iron liver.

There was a rustle to his left as someone dressed in the concealing over robes commonly worn on the island settled themselves in the seat beside him. Ace was set to ignore the interloper when an arm was thrown across his shoulders and a familiar voice laughed in his ear:

"Miss me, hothead?"

Ace turned, wrapped his own arm firmly around the woman who'd just invaded his personal space and dragged her onto his lap. "Not a chance, gorgeous. You always find me before I start to pine."

The white-haired woman giggled, one hand tangling in his hair as the other waved a wad of beli at the barman. "D'you serve food here, kind sir?" she crooned. At the man's nod, she went on, "then bring us whatever your cook feels is best and keep it coming."

Ace' arm tightened around her waist and he pulled her headscarf down so he could nuzzle her ear. "You, my dear Fox, are a queen among women; a true goddess of the sea."

"You only say that because I cater to your appetites," she teased him, the innuendo making him smirk lecherously and playfully nip the end of her nose.

"No, it's your magnificent body, charming wit, brilliant mind and stunning range of skills that captivate me, princess," he retorted, her presence soothing the ferocious, smouldering rage that had taken hold of him nearly three weeks previously. "A man who fails to fall at your feet upon beholding your true nature is either completely blind to the finer things in life or dead."

"Or not interested in women," Fox retorted.

"Nope, Izo's as crazy about you as the rest of the crew. Gender preference has nothing to do with it," Ace said smugly, shifting her slightly so she was sat sideways across his thighs. "Did you know we visited Mystoria Island a few months back?" he added wickedly, leaning closer so he could whisper directly into her ear. "You never mentioned you were worshipped as a goddess there; the captain thought it was hilarious."

The white-haired woman groaned softly and buried her face in his chest. "So mean," she whimpered. Ace would have gone on teasing his friend about her involuntary apotheosis but the barman had returned with a respectable quantity of food and he was hungry.

"Sir, ma'am," the older man said gruffly, putting the plates on the bar. Ace helped Fox shift so she was facing the bar, then set about devouring what had been put in front of him. A soft chuckle tickled his ear and at the edge of his vision another wad of beli changed hands.

"Let me know when we've eaten through that," Fox said, turning her attention to her own meal and shifting her weight so her back was flush against Ace' chest.

Portgas D. Ace chuckled softly. It looked like his remaining time in Alabasta might not be so boring after all.

* * *

Once dinner was over –and Fox had parted with a terrifying amount of money keeping him fed– Ace let his white-haired friend lead him back to her boat. He'd been sleeping in his own craft, not being susceptible to cold, but that didn't mean he'd turn down a comfy mattress and soft pillows if he could get them. That the Swift Hunter only had one double bed didn't bother him in the least; Fox was relentlessly tactile around the people she trusted and Ace had no problems cuddling up with her at night. Of course the first few times he'd woken up to find her wrapped around him had been rather, well, panic-inducing –he knew exactly whose daughter she was– but with Marco's reassurance he'd quickly got used to it. It was rather flattering really, not to mention a secret guilty pleasure: Fox was one of the most stunning women he'd ever seen and certainly the loveliest he'd ever been allowed to touch.

He generally kept his attraction well-buried though; he didn't want to end up like the rest of her former conquests. How Hawk-Eyes managed to track down each man his daughter had ever been romantically involved with was a mystery, but the fact remained that almost every last one had died at the hands of the World's Strongest Swordsman. Ace knew he was good, but he wasn't that good.

Falling into bed with the only woman he'd ever seen stark naked but not had sex with, Ace pondered how he had gotten to know the secretive and whimsical woman who had shaken his world time and time again and beaten him over the head with his own irrational behaviour until he admitted his foolishness and begged forgiveness.

* * *

The first time Ace had met Fox, he'd not known her name. He had however done his utmost to kill her. He'd still been captain of the Spade Pirates then and she'd found him partying on a beach on the first half of the Grand Line with his crew and a good number of the locals. The celebration had been winding down when a then-seventeen Ace had noticed the woman in a flower-print shirt and deck trousers watching him, her head wrapped in a long scarf and her eyes shadowed. Sensing her strength, he'd approached her and been instantly provoked into a violent fury when the stranger had asked him who his father was.

The subsequent battle had been completely one-sided as the woman had dodged or redirected every single one of his attacks without missing a beat in the conversation. Well, verbal exchange: Ace had mostly been throwing insults and expressing his intent to rip her limb from limb while she pointed out how rude he was being and reiterating her inquiry as to his parentage. She'd eventually pinned him to the sand and explained that she'd thought he looked a bit like the late Pirate King and had been wondering if Ace was Gol D. Roger's youngest child.

Ace had cursed a blue streak and tried to shake the woman off, with little success. Eventually the woman had realised she wasn't going to get a clear answer from the irate pirate and vanished, leaving Ace behind, furious and humiliated by his defeat. His anger at being so effortlessly bested had prompted him to make more of a name for himself and eventually eat the Devil Fruit his crew later found.

* * *

The second time he met Fox, he didn't get a chance to fight as she pinned him to the ground with a Kairoseki knife before he even realised she was there. That happened on Fishman Island; he'd been exploring when she got the drop on him and mugged him in a back alley. She'd then politely apologised for the inconvenience and showed him a photograph, explaining that she was looking for Roger's youngest because the man's five elder, illegitimate children wanted to meet the youngest member of the family. Ace had been stunned stupid by the idea of having blood siblings and been put through a cripplingly embarrassing lecture about the likelihood of illegitimate offspring when a person was as free with their affections as most pirates were. Especially around mermaids.

After grudgingly admitting that yes, He was Roger's kid, Ace had been introduced to three of his older sisters, all of whom were mermaids and one of whom had two daughters of her own. All three had fallen on him like hungry wolves, peppered him with questions about his childhood and insisted on feeding him, hugging him and generally fussing over him. It had been a totally alien experience for a boy raised by mountain bandits and his utter incomprehension of their motives coupled with his reluctance to harm this new family had been ruthlessly taken advantage of by the frighteningly perceptive mermaids. It hadn't helped that they all either looked like him or acted like him and generally behaved like he was the best thing that had ever happened to them. His crew had all been jealous of the attention their captain had been getting, though he hadn't actually told any of them that the five gorgeous, half-naked ladies that refused to let him out of their sight were actually his siblings and nieces.

The Spade Pirates spent two weeks on Fishman Island and Ace was profoundly changed by the experience. His eldest sister, Gol D. Spitfire, was old enough to be his mother and the only one of the mermaid siblings Roger had actually met. He'd even given her her name, probably as a joke when the then-fifteen-year-old had fiercely declared her intention to become the first person to tame and breed Sea Kings. She had succeeded as well; Ace had met one or two of her 'pets' since and they honestly scared him shitless. She'd also done a lot to mitigate Ace' lifelong uncertainty regarding his own right to live, as he'd been unable to deny _her_ brilliance and purpose.

His second oldest sister was called Ama, who ran the Mermaid Café, was four years younger than Spitfire and had two daughters, one of whom was his age. Ishilly was almost Ace' mermaid double in looks, nothing like him in personality and thought he was the coolest uncle any girl could possibly have. She'd made a point of introducing him to all her friends at the Café, which had made all the customers green with envy as the waitresses huddled around his table and fawned all over him. It had been rather awkward for Ace meeting his niece's friends who were the same age as the various women he'd romanced in the past, but he'd managed. Remembering how he'd dealt with his little brother Luffy had helped.

His third sister was called Seishelle, was only six years older than he was and married to prince Fukaboshi, the heir to the island's throne. Ace had not met the prince, but got the impression he was a good sort. Seishelle was also the largest of the sisters, large enough to be considered a giant had she been born with legs rather than a tail, though none of his sisters could be considered small. She was also relentlessly optimistic in a way that reminded Ace very much of Luffy, which Spitfire claimed had been inherited from Roger.

Ace had not seen the white-haired woman again until he was leaving the island, and then he'd only caught her for long enough to express his gratitude for her introducing him to his siblings and to ask for her name. She'd grinned at him and told him to call her Fox, saying her real name would keep for a while.

* * *

The third time Portgas D. Ace had met Fox had been on board the Moby Dick, shortly after deciding to join the crew. It was also when he had learnt she was a Shichibukai's daughter.


	12. Serious

**Serious**

Ace awoke to the smell of food, stumbled out of bed and across the tiny hall into the kitchen, where every surface was covered in boxes of food. Uncaring of his relative state of undress the pirate dug in, making sure to sit close enough to Fox at the table that they had skin contact. One of his favourite things about the woman's Devil Fruit Power was that it cancelled out his narcolepsy unless she was feeling vindictive and triggered it on purpose.

"So," Fox asked after he'd demolished half the dishes and had slowed down a little, "who died?"

Ace froze, fork halfway to his mouth.

"I know someone is dead, Hothead," Fox said, her voice as tranquil as the Calm Belt and twice as dangerous, "I can feel it. Someone who matters to me is gone and not in a manner of their choosing. Who was it and what happened?"

Ace' appetite fled as wild fury boiled in his gut. He put down the fork. "Thatch is dead," he said shortly. "Marshall D. Teach murdered him."

Fox nodded, eyes downcast. Ace didn't comment on her reaction; Fox' attitude to death was very, very strange. She would mourn, but for now she probably wanted more information and a shot at 'balancing the scales': vengeance.

"He murdered Thatch over a Devil Fruit; I'm hunting him down."

Fox raised her head to meet his eyes and Ace had to make an effort not to flinch: her eyes _burned_ with cold, controlled rage. "I will leave it to you for now, Fire Fist," she said evenly, addressing him with the nickname off his bounty poster that she rarely ever used, "but should your mission prove unsuccessful remember that I would be happy to take over for you. I will be telling the Sea of Thatch's death, so should Blackbeard be found walking free the ocean will not shelter him."

Ace nodded, chilled. He generally forgot that his friend was the greatest assassin on the Grand Line and possibly in the entire world as she rarely let that part of herself surface. 'Telling the Sea' meant that Fox would be sharing the information with the network that was run jointly by her mother and Ace's sister Ama. This network was also where a lot of Fox' contracts came from. Ace wanted to complain that there was no way he would let Teach escape, but Fox would just tell him that in that case it shouldn't matter to him whether or not contingencies were in place, so he didn't bother to say anything and went back to eating.

"I know it stings your pride to have me planning in case of failure," Fox added more softly, "but experience has taught me that no matter what we may desire things always go amiss at one point or another. Sometimes we can compensate for the change with little difficulty, but not always. Remember that you are not the only one to want him dead."

"He was my responsibility!" It burst out in a wave of rage, sorrow and betrayal that sent flames dancing along his arms and warming the room by a good ten degrees.

"Your responsibility, yes; that however does _not_ mean Thatch's death was your fault," Fox said firmly, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Those are two very different things. The weight of his murder is on Blackbeard's shoulders and his alone, as it was his choice to kill his crewmate. You are simply doing what you can to deal with the situation."

Ace nodded, not willing to talk through his food in the presence of a lady. Makino had been strict about that kind of thing.

"Should you ever decide however that you'd rather the traitor met his death on a Kairoseki blade one dark night, just let me know," she added suddenly with a smile that chilled Ace's blood. "You know how to reach me, so don't be shy. I'd do it for free so as to have a proper grave gift for when I visit Thatch myself to say goodbye. Nothing says 'I care' like a severed head."

Ace wisely did not comment.

* * *

The previous conversation having been closed, Fox waited until there was no food left before asking Ace why, exactly he was hanging around Nanohana in the first place.

"I'm waiting for my little brother!" Ace said brightly, handing her another stack of dishes to be washed.

"You have a brother, Hothead?" Uh oh, Ace knew that tone: he was in trouble. "You have family you never told us about?"

"He's my foster brother, not blood family," Ace tried to escape but it proved futile.

"So what! Shyarly's adopted and it doesn't change a thing! Portgas D. Ace you are in so much trouble when your sisters hear about this!"

Ace abandoned all pretence of dignity and prostrated himself on the kitchen floor. "I'm really, really sorry. I'm an idiot for thinking you wouldn't be interested and a selfish moron for keeping him to myself. Please don't sic my sisters on me."

Fox paused for a moment before relenting. "Fine; get off the floor and tell me all about this little brother of yours so I can placate them properly."

Relieved that he wasn't going to have to keep a watchful eye out for vengeful twenty-foot mermaids while hunting Teach, Ace perched on the edge of the kitchen table and started talking.

"His name's Luffy and-"

"Wait!" Fox held up a hand and twisted around. "Luffy? Monkey D. Luffy?"

Ace' face lit up hopefully. "You've met?"

Fox put down the plate she was holding and laughed, her high, hyena-like yips bouncing off the walls as she clutched her stomach and rolled on the floor.

"He's my captain, Hothead," she finally managed to choke out. "Good grief what a coincidence!" Dragging herself into a sitting position she leant her head against Ace' thigh; "So he's your brother? I can see it."

"You've joined a crew? My brother's crew?" Ace couldn't believe it. Not just the odd coincidence; Fox had had both Whitebeard and Red-Hair Shanks practically begging her to join their crews for the better part of five years and had remained unmoved. For her to have joined his little brother in such short order was pretty miraculous.

"He had a part in rescuing me from a sticky situation and then wouldn't take no for an answer," Fox informed him. "Oh, and he's going places. Whitebeard and Shanks have already gone places and are just hanging around waiting for life's next excitement to come to them."

Ace wanted to argue, but couldn't. It was a nasty way of putting the truth that would probably make both Yonko laugh, but that didn't make it any less true.

"So how's he been?" Ace demanded, wanting to hear all about what his brother had been up to. "I saw the bounty poster but I want details!"

"You tell me about Luffy's childhood and where he got his powers from and I'll tell you all about his recent adventures," Fox bargained.

"Okay. He got it off Shanks, apparently; this was before I met him," Ace began, dropping to sit on the floor and pulling Fox properly into his lap. "Apparently Shanks decided to use Foosha Village as a base for a few months back when Luffy was seven…"

* * *

More of Ace and Fox.


	13. Rejoin

**Rejoin**

Zoro was looking forward to meeting up with Fox in Alabasta; he hadn't realised until now how wonderful it was to have another sane person on board. The crew had a new addition, a proper doctor called Tony Tony Chopper who happened to be a reindeer. Chopper was very interested in meeting Fox due to Luffy's enthusiastic descriptions of her healing ability and disguises.

Sadly, the crew's enthusiasm had been rather dulled by the lack of food on board in the past few days; Luffy's appetite was a monster. Then there was the rather embarrassing disaster involving Mr. 2 Bon Clay, which Zoro was rather glad Fox had missed. Now however Nanohana was visible on the shore of the upcoming island of Alabasta and they were closing on the port. Things were looking up.

* * *

Fox sat calmly in the eye of a storm of panicked babbling at the counter of the Spice Bean restaurant, scant feet from where Ace was fast asleep face down in his lunch, right hand still raised with a fork gripped in it. She had already informed her favourite hothead that she could sense Luffy's approach, so the fiery pirate had decided to eat at Nanohana's most celebrated restaurant before meeting up with his little brother. The teetering stacks of plates on either side of him stood testimony to his massive appetite and the tattoo in full view on his naked back declared his allegiance to Whitebeard to all and sundry. Considering Luffy would be arriving shortly, Ace had decided to dispense with secrecy altogether.

The accumulation of plates prevented Fox from sitting as close to Ace as she usually did and as a result he had been felled by his narcolepsy: right into a plate of curry.

All around her the rest of the customers were chattering about desert strawberries when Ace woke, abruptly rising from his meal with a splutter. "Damn," he said, straightening his hat, wiping his face and turning on his seat to take in both Fox and the assembled audience, "I fell asleep." He then turned back to his meal. Fox ducked her head and pulled her headscarf forward a little so people couldn't see her snickering. A few seconds later he crashed forward again, his narcolepsy apparently making up for all the missed opportunities three days spent in almost constant contact with Fox had caused.

After waking up for a second time and finishing his food, Ace asked the chef if he had seen Luffy today, showing the man Fox' captain's bounty poster. As he did so, Fox sensed a familiar Devil Fruit User enter the building behind them and deliberately turned her face aside so as to avoid notice. Ace wouldn't rat her out and if a fight started she would have a perfect excuse to flee the building. Of course doing so would count as eating and running, but Ace would find it hilarious that he had corrupted her to such a degree and likely boast about it to Whitebeard at the earliest opportunity.

As Captain Smoker faced off against Ace with appropriate banter on both sides, Fox sensed Luffy approaching the restaurant very quickly. Said straw-hatted pirate rocketed into the restaurant at high speed, crashing into Smoker and launching both the Marine and Ace through the counter and the wall. Fox peered sideways through the hole and determined that the bantering duo had been sent through several walls, which was impressive considering they were both Logia Users.

She muffled a giggle as her captain sat right next to her and demanded food; he didn't even notice her. Taking advantage of Luffy being the centre of attention, Fox set out to find the rest of the crew. Ace would have no trouble locating his little brother now and she needed to show the others where the supplies were.

* * *

The crew of the Going Merry minus Luffy was sculking at the edge of the town, waiting for Fox to find them. Sanji, being the only person who had not had his face copied by Mr. 2, had acquired outfits for the girls. Unfortunately, Sanji being Sanji, the outfits were skimpy dancing girl costumes. Zoro had been provoking another fight when Fox appeared, leading a camel.

"I've got all our supplies here," she said briskly. "Guys, here's some suitable clothing," she handed Zoro a stack of parcels, "and I have water, normal food and trail rations for all of us. Oh, and spare cloaks of course; the sun is too hot to be out in without proper covering."

Zoro, Usopp and Chopper –who was soon introduced to Fox– all changed in an alley behind the ruined building they were using as a meeting place, then returned to eat the food she had brought. Since Luffy was elsewhere, the meal was fairly civilised. Fox simply placed herself in Zoro's lap and seemingly nodded off while the others discussed their plans, Vivi taking the lead. The swordsman knew she wasn't asleep, but let her relax as he polished off the remaining food. Then Vivi dived for cover and Zoro got up to see what the fuss was about.

It turned out to be marines, chasing a pirate. Specifically marines chasing Luffy, who spotted his crew and soon had the marines chasing them too. The group instantly ran for it, Fox snatching the remaining supplies off the camel and abandoning the animal. Zoro noticed that the man in the lead was captain Smoker, which explained why Luffy had chosen to run rather than fight. Smoker was launching a blow at the fleeing rubberman when a stranger intervened, dispelling the marine captain's powers.

"Ace!" Luffy shouted. Zoro swiftly grabbed his captain and pushed him towards the Merry:

"We're running away, remember!"

"Man! I never thought I'd meet Ace here!" Luffy said, glancing back again but not stopping to gawk this time as the crew made a dash for the Merry's gangplank.

"What about your ship, Fox-chan?" Sanji panted.

"Swift Hunter can take care of herself," Fox assured him.

"Did you deliver the letter?" Vivi asked.

"I found a duck a bit like yours yesterday who agreed to take it to your father for me," the white-haired woman said, fanning herself with her sleeve. "I didn't want to leave the port in case I missed your arrival."

Vivi decided to send Carue to the palace as well, so after hauling up anchor and sailing down the coast a little they let the duck down with a flask of water before sailing further towards their destination: Yuba.

* * *

"So, who was that guy?" Zoro asked as they continued along the coast.

"My brother!" Luffy chirped. Zoro ignored the credulous shouts from Usopp and Nami.

"Well, I'm not surprised you have a brother," the swordsman admitted, "But why is he in the Grand Line?"

Luffy explained that his brother was a pirate looking for One Piece just like he was, but being three years older had left home three years earlier.

"What are the odds of you both eating Devil Fruit?" Sanji mused.

"I know! I was surprised too!" Luffy laughed. Zoro let the conversation continue without him and watched Fox instead, who was gazing out across the water down to the right of the railing Luffy was leaning on. Zoro couldn't see what she was looking at from where he was, but the soft smile on her lips indicated it wasn't anything dangerous.

A few seconds later their rescuer landed on the railing behind Luffy, pushing the Straw-hat forward onto his face.

"Yo."

"Ace!" Luffy shouted happily.

Zoro tuned out most of the following conversation after the older pirate thanked them for taking care of Luffy, until the words "…will you come join the Whitebeard crew? With your friends, of course," reached his ears.

"No way," Luffy said flatly.

Laughter from Fox placed her in the centre of attention. "I told you so, Hothead!" she teased, moving forward to flick Ace' hat off his head so it hung around his neck from its string, "He's going places!"

"But everyone is going to blame me when they find out you won't be visiting anymore!" Ace pouted. "Don't do this to me!"

"Ace, you know Fox?" Luffy asked.

"Hell yes: I've known her for years," Ace said bluntly. "One of the best friends I've ever made. Everyone on Whitebeard's crew adores her too, so take good care of her or we'll come and steal her!" the shirtless pirate placed a hand on Fox' shoulder, turned her around and planted a kiss in the corner of her mouth. "Look after yourself precious. Oh, and Luffy? Here," he tossed the younger pirate a scrap of paper. "I wanted to give this to you." He had not let go of Fox to do so, which made Zoro twitch. Not that he'd been happy about Ace kissing her in the first place.

Ace finally released Fox and shoved his hat back on his head. "Having a dumb little brother makes an older brother worry. He probably gives you guys lots of trouble, too. Take care of him for me." He dropped overboard.

Luffy peered over the railing, down at a tiny craft floating in the shadow of the Going Merry. "What! You're leaving already!"

Instead of rushing to the side of the ship to listen to the rest of the conversation, Zoro pulled Fox aside. "You know Fire-Fist Ace?"

Fox smiled. "I know a lot of people, Zoro. Ace is just the tip of the iceberg."

"How many of them are going to kiss you?"

She chuckled. "As many as believe they can get away with it, I suspect. I'm well-known in certain circles."

"Whitebeard's kind of circles?" the swordsman guessed.

"Yup. He and Shanks have been trying to get me to join their respective crews for years."

"Yet you picked Luffy." Zoro could hardly believe it.

Fox graced him with a soft, lopsided smile. "Like I told Ace, Monkey D. Luffy is going places and I don't want to miss any more of the adventure than I can help."

Zoro grinned fiercely. He had definitely picked the right captain!


	14. Heat

**Heat**

Less than an hour into their journey on foot across the desert to Yuba, Sanji noticed that Fox was having difficulties. She was more heavily wrapped up than the rest of the crew, completely covered from head to foot in a loose dark blue robe with a scarf wrapped around her head leaving only a thin slit to look out through. Even her eyes were hidden as she was wearing sunglasses again. Sanji was more concerned about the slight hesitation in her gait and the way she weaved from side to side every now and then.

"Fox-chan?" he inquired carefully, moving so he was walking next to her. "Are you alright?"

"No," Fox said flatly, startling the chef slightly. "I'm a child of the sea, Sanji. This dry heat is killing me."

"Literally?" Sanji asked, a little panicky. He didn't want Fox-chan to die!

"Not any time soon, I promise," Fox whispered, "but the aridity and the heat are more than I can really cope with. I feel very strange."

"I could carry you," Sanji offered seriously. Fox' health was in danger so this was not the moment to mess about.

"Would you?" Fox swayed on her feet. "I'm afraid to stop moving, Sanji-kun," she added; "I think I might never be able to start again."

Sanji quickly lifted the taller woman up onto his back and let her lean her head on his shoulder, now seriously concerned for her. Fox had up until now seemed both unflappable and highly resilient and seeing her as weak and helpless as she had been that first day on the Baratie worried him greatly. Her harsh, hoarse breathing in his ear however reassured him that she was not too far gone yet.

"Hey, dartboard-brow! What are you doing?" Sanji glared across as the shitty swordsman.

"What does it look like I'm doing, marimo?"

"What's wrong with Fox?" Luffy asked.

"The heat and aridity are a bit much for her," Sanji explained; "probably due to her mermaid heritage. She's better suited to damp conditions than this desert."

"Will she be okay?" Luffy asked seriously.

There was a short, cough-like chuckle from Fox. "I promise not to die on you, captain. I want to see you make it to Pirate King after all."

"Good!"

"Are you really alright?" Sanji asked sotto voce when Luffy was no longer in hearing distance.

"I've been worse," Fox replied, which wasn't all that reassuring.

"Have some of my water," the chef said, holding the flask up to her face. "Your need is definitely greater than mine."

* * *

Ironically, Fox' frailty meant that, when Luffy lost all their luggage to thieving Sagi, both swordsman and chef still had water bottles as they were taking it in turns to coax the part-mermaid into drinking. Sanji did have to put his precious burden down in order to defeat the giant Sandora lizard, but defending her against the monster desert dweller and a chance for some food made up his mind for him. Food would help Fox-chan replace the nutrients she was sweating out and there was just enough shade among the rocks for her to sit in moderate comfort. Also, the rescued camel could carry her much more easily.

Sanji soon changed his mind about the camel when it refused to let any of the guys on it. As Fox had become slightly delirious and wouldn't let anyone other than Sanji and Zoro within arm's reach without lashing out, that meant she couldn't ride as the disgusting beast wouldn't let either man ride with her. Instead Nami and Vivi got on the camel and the marimo tied Fox firmly onto Sanji's back. She was muttering and whimpering constantly now, words slurring occasionally and regularly descending into gibberish. What was comprehensible, made Sanji want to kick someone.

Luffy had stupidly eaten a hallucinogenic cactus, so after Chopper knocked their captain out the shitty swordsman made sure he didn't get left behind by dragging him behind them. Usopp staggered along in the rear while the reindeer plodded onwards in his full animal form, barely conscious in the heat.

Luffy recovered from his poisoning as the sun started to set and just as Usopp keeled over, so Zoro heaved the sniper over one shoulder as the temperature dropped and they finally caught up with Nami, Vivi and the camel. Fox seemed to be breathing much more easily in the chilly desert night, but she swayed and staggered so badly when Sanji let her try to walk that he picked her up again and refused to let her off. She capitulated at once, a dead giveaway as to how well she wasn't. She was no longer delirious though, which the chef was grateful for. Her ravings had suggested either a morbidly overactive imagination or a profoundly shitty past and he was leaning towards the latter. People with happy pasts do not beg and plead to die so they can join their friends, nor do they apologise to people who aren't there for 'not being there' and 'not living up to expectations'. The bit about suffering being the road to discipline sounded like something the shitty swordsman might believe, though 'in order to kill you first have to die' was a bit odd.

Sanji was very glad to reach Yuba and even more glad that there were beds to sleep in. What did upset him was that as soon as she realised there were beds Fox stumbled into Zoro, wrapped her arms around his middle and refused to be budged; the shitty marimo wound up going to sleep with Fox-chan in his arms, his back to the room in order to prevent her from falling out of bed. Sanji would have been angrier if he hadn't seen the concern and confusion on the swordsman's face when he realised he couldn't pry the woman off; the chef consoled himself with the knowledge that at least the moss-head had the sense to treat _this_ woman with the care and attention she deserved, even if he utterly failed where the rest of the female gender were concerned.

By the next morning Fox was clear-minded again but as weak as an overcooked noodle, but the shitty swordsman snatched her up before Sanji could and carried her outside. Then a little later Luffy stopped under a dead tree and refused to go further, provoking Vivi into attacking him when he pointed out how naïve she was to want to defeat crocodile without anybody dying. The marimo stayed out of the dispute entirely, hanging back and coaxing Fox to swallow more water even as the Straw-hat captain and the princess of Alabasta got into a vicious-looking fist-fight. Eventually Vivi broke down and agreed to lead them to Rainbase, when Crocodile's base was, a full day's walk away.

Sanji just hoped Fox could make it.


	15. Mystery

**Mystery**

On the morning they were due to arrive in Rain Dinners Sanji took over carrying Fox again. It had been decided that, as he was the only one whom Baroque Works could not identify, it would be safer for the white-haired woman to be carried by him. Fox' only request was that they left her somewhere quiet and out of the way before storming Crocodile's stronghold. So, after Usopp and Luffy went looking for water, Sanji deposited his precious burden in an alley just out of sight of the camel hitching posts where the rest of the crew was waiting and turned to leave.

"Good luck," Fox whispered after him. Sanji stilled. There were a lot of things he didn't know about Fox, but he knew she couldn't have survived on the Grand Line for this long without serious skills, no matter how vulnerable she was to the arid desert heat.

"Take care, mellorine," he whispered as he returned to where Vivi-chan, Nami-chan and the shitty swordsman were waiting.

As he vanished around the corner the robe and headscarf Fox had been wearing fluttered to the ground, leaving the alley empty.

* * *

Fox had not told Vivi the truth when she'd claimed to have found a duck to take the message to the palace; she'd actually found a falcon. Said falcon had taken Vivi's message and Fox' own proposition to King Nefertari Cobra and returned two days later with a contract signed in blood.

The Phantom Fox, Dragon-Slayer, King-Killer and Death Unseen, had a Mission. Princess Nefertari Vivi would be returned to her father's sight without serious injury, a prize the king considered well worth the assassin's demanded price.

As with all her previous missions, there would be no witnesses to report her presence to the authorities. Baroque Works was truly pathetic; _real_ assassins remained completely anonymous.

* * *

Luffy didn't want to admit it, but the situation was pretty damn serious. He, Zoro, Usopp, Nami and marine captain Smoker were trapped in a Kairoseki cage, Vivi was just outside with a bananadile, the room was flooding and Crocodile the Shichibukai had left them to die.

Then a ghost dropped from the ceiling, dispatching the massive reptile with a single swing of its sword just as Vivi dashed out the door in search of help.

The rubberman stared. White, loose trousers lucked into white calf boots, a white tunic with long, loose sleeves and a white belt holding it closed, a white hood to hide the individual's hair and throat and a white mask moulded into a fox' muzzle. The only colour in the stranger's apparel were the two red-brown stripes running up either side of the mask's nose and across where the eye holes should have been to the ears, giving the empty visage a watchful leer.

Smoker grunted. "It seems this is the end, then."

"What! Why? Who's that?" Luffy asked.

"That is the Phantom Fox, the world's greatest assassin, who has only ever been sighted once," Smoker growled. "There are many incidents the marines believe the Phantom is responsible for, but it is impossible to confirm as there are never any witnesses."

"No witnesses?" Usopp quavered as the white ghost calmly moved down the bananadile's cooling body to stand in front of the cage, fox mask inscrutable.

"The mystery with the seven hundred and ten million beli bounty," Zoro murmured, sounding impressed.

"S-s-seven hundred and ten _million_!" Nami squeaked. "I've never even heard of one that high before!"

"Highest starting bounty in history," Smoker grunted, "for the bloody slaughter of an entire family of World Nobles in their home in Mariejois, from the oldest man to the youngest child and their entire household, down to the pets."

The assassin appeared to be pondering something, then slipped a hand under his cloak and removed a folded piece of paper. Stepping forward, the ghost pointed at Smoker, then the paper.

The marine captain muttered something along the lines of "… hell matters now?" and accepted the letter, unfolding it.

"What did the ghost give you, Smoky?" Luffy asked.

The marine captain's eyebrow twitched. "It's a contract," he rasped. "We sign it and our _friend_ here will get us out of the building, on the condition that we never mention his presence or actions in Alabasta to anyone, ever."

Luffy grinned. "Sounds good to me!"

Smoker sighed. "Except we have to sign it in blood."

"What!" it was a chorus.

"So?" Zoro decided to add his two beli. "Better the contract than certain death, right?"

Luffy agreed, so the crew all took turns to sign. Smoker was more reluctant, but eventually added his name as well. The white-robed killer accepted the damp contract pushed through the gaps in the cage and stowed it away, moving backwards as the water level rose further.

Nami quailed as another bananadile emerged from the hols in the floor. This one however was dispatched by the newly-arrived Sanji, who kicked it into unconsciousness.

"Hey. Were you waiting?" the chef asked coolly before noticing the stranger. "And who's this?"

"Sanji! Run!" Usopp shouted. "He'll kill you!"

"Who-" the assassin vanished and the chef slumped forwards, the white ghost reappearing behind him, a knife protruding from one sleeve to brush the edge of Sanji's neck.

"Hey! That's my cook!" Luffy shouted, outraged. "You can't kill him!"

The assassin cocked his head on one side. Luffy could almost hear the words, _why not_, coming from that blank mask.

"Because he's _my_ cook! I signed your contract, didn't I!"

"Cap… tain?" Sanji wheezed, still conscious but clearly unable to move. "Wha ..?"

"I'll take responsibility!" Luffy ploughed on determinedly. "If he tells anyone I'll pay for it! I promise!"

The white ghost bowed shallowly and dropped the chef, turning to stare at the three bananadiles that were filling the space between the smashed stairs and the cage. His left hand rose to the sword hilt peeking over his shoulder.

_Shhhmmm._

The first bananadile fell in half lengthways.

_Shhhwuuuu._

The second's eyes looked vaguely puzzled even as its head fell off the rest of its body.

_Kshuu._

The third collapsed, twitching as it was gutted like a fish; its final spasm launched a ball from its throat. The ghost relaxed, releasing the sword hilt and stepping away. Luffy blinked; he hadn't even seen the man move.

"What is that?" Sanji asked, rising to his feet a little unsteadily and poking the ball with his foot.

"Doru doru ball! Yes! Freedom!" shouted Mr. 3, rising from the improbably small ball with an expression of triumph. The candle man didn't see the assassin lurking behind him and proceeded to mock their situation until white-gloved fingers dug into his neck and he passed out.

"Great. How do we get out now?" Nami moaned. The ghost stepped forward to examine the cage door, then pointed at Zoro and firmly waved sideways.

"He's going to cut through the lock," the green-haired swordsman said with a devilish grin, rising to his feet and moving towards the other end of the cage. Everyone present stood well back as the assassin shifted into an odd pose.

"What's he doing?" Luffy asked.

"Shh!" Zoro hissed, his expression wild and hungry. "That's a Battoujutsu stance."

The white ghost stilled completely.

_Shhuoouw._

There was a moment where Luffy was sure he'd missed something, then the cage door creaked open, two little bits of metal dropping into the water with twin plops.

Their unexpected rescuer then hopped up the cooling body of the nearest bananadile towards princess Vivi, who'd been watching the scene unfold with wide eyes.

"Don't you dare lay a finger on Vivi-chan you-" Sanji bellowed. The white ghost ignored the cook, reaching into his cloak to pull out a letter, which he handed to Vivi.

As she read it, the princess' face lit up. "It's alright! Luffy, Sanji, everyone! My father hired him to keep me safe until we can stop Crocodile!"

"Thank goodness!" Usopp said loudly. "I thought Vivi was done for."

"I'd never let anyone harm Vivi-chan!" Sanji protested.

"Ero-cook," Zoro muttered. The inevitable argument was interrupted by a sharp cracking sound as the wall gave way. The white ghost seized Vivi with one arm, lunged at Smoker and all three vanished completely in a flash of white light just as the water crashed down on the Straw-Hats. Luffy felt his powers drain away with the rush of water as Zoro grabbed him around the waist and swam for the surface.

* * *

Smoker blinked as the flooding room underneath Rain Dinners was replaced with the bright sunshine on the edge of the lake outside the casino. Beside him the princess of Alabasta was looking around frantically for the Straw-Hats and the assassin who'd rescued them was nowhere to be seen.

The marine captain made his decision and left quickly, before the pirates could surface from the lake behind him. He'd learnt a lot about what Crocodile was doing in Alabasta and the contract he'd signed made it impossible to explain the situation to his superiors. When he found his subordinates he would have them summon reinforcements, then wait and see how this mess ended up so he could deal with the aftermath.

His main concern however was how on earth King Nefertari Cobra had managed to get hold of the Phantom Fox in order to make that contract for the princess' protection.

* * *

The Phantom Fox makes his debut.


	16. Race

**Race**

When the Zoro and the rest of those who had recently escaped from Crocodile's trap rejoined Chopper, they found Fox sitting on top of the giant crab alongside the camel and the reindeer. The swordsman said nothing of the white-haired woman's part in their recent adventure, simply leaping on board the crustacean and sitting down right next to her.

"Nice sword," he murmured into her scarf, his words not travelling beyond her ears. The gentle snort he got in return made his distinctly evil grin widen further. He hadn't known she was a swordswoman, though considering her parentage he should have guessed. Her style however was completely different to Hawk-Eyes' own, being based on speed rather than brute strength. Well, speed and the hardest, finest katana he had ever seen. He'd recognised the sheen on the blade; it was forged from Kairoseki like her knives were, but treated so as to be slightly flexible as well as harder than diamond. Its deep, all-consuming song still rang in his bones, making his blood race with the promise of battle.

Had that sword belonged to anyone else, Zoro would have cheerfully killed them for a chance to have it sing for him. Sharper than Kitetsu without the cursed blade's bloodthirsty nature, a weight in its song that reminded him of the deep sea and a pure tone that held the cruel, uncaring neutrality of nature, it was as close to the essence of what it meant to cut as was possible for a sword forged by human hands.

As the crab set off and Luffy was left behind due to Crocodile's interference, Zoro realised that for the first time in his life he wanted something. Wanting to be the strongest swordsman in the world was something he wanted to _be_ rather than have, a standard he had to meet in order to remain true to himself. Following Luffy was much the same, a bar to mark his adherence to his own high standards and prove his own worth. But now, now he wanted something he couldn't win with loyalty or hard work.

He wanted Fox. But he knew enough about women to know that the only way he'd ever get her was if she gave herself to him, never mind that her father would probably kill him if the man ever found out Zoro's intentions. Gently resting his head against hers, he sighed quietly.

_I'm completely fucked._

* * *

When the crab eventually dumped them in the river and they bumped into the Sandora Rarecat Fish, which according to Vivi had human beings as its favourite food, Fox talked it down somehow and persuaded it to give them a lift. The sudden arrival of the Kung-Fu Dugongs probably helped, but the fish seemed as taken with Fox as the crab from earlier had been with Nami and carried them to the coast directly east of Alubarna in record time. Then, shortly after their landing, Carue arrived with the Super Spot-Billed Duck Squad to give them a lift to the city. Zoro was glad to cut short Fox' cooing over the massive fish that had tried to eat them, though Nami seemed to agree that the beast was rather cute-looking.

As they raced for the capital, Fox –who seemed to have finally adapted a little to the heat– insisted on staying with Vivi just in case something went wrong. Sanji didn't have the backbone to deal with a forthright woman and Zoro was still reeling from his revelation, which he was now making an effort to repress for as long as was humanly possible. As a result, when they were within sight of the city Fox and Vivi split off from the rest of the Straw-Hats, who in turn charged on in full sight of any potential watchers to act as bait.

* * *

Fighting Mr. 1, the man made of blades, brought Roronoa Zoro closer to death than he had ever been before. He didn't know it, but being that badly damaged reawakened the latent energy left behind from the previous times Fox had healed him, energy that kept him alive and in doing so granted him the opportunity for a sudden insight into the nature of reality.

_Not everything lives, but _everything_ breathes._

In order to cut something, you must strike at a weak point, a join between two areas of strength. All that breathes, all that expands and contracts, does so along these weak points.

Roronoa Zoro killed Mr. 1, having learnt to cut through metal. He then fell flat on his face, the pain overcoming him.

* * *

Vivi didn't know Fox, the Straw-Hat's 'master of disguise', very well compared to the rest of the crew. She didn't even know what the older woman looked like, as Fox always wore a head-scarf and tinted spectacles. She was also by far the quietest member of the crew as well as the most inscrutable by a very wide margin. Zoro was actually fairly upfront about how he felt about things compared to Fox, for whom calm, empty watchfulness was her most defining characteristic.

Fox did not trust her like way Luffy did, believe in her the way Usopp did, protect her as Sanji did, sympathise with her as Nami did or care like Chopper did. She didn't even encourage the princess like Zoro tried to do. She was just there, watching. Vivi knew she wasn't without a heart as it was Fox who had made her hot chocolate when she woke in the middle of the night after Igaram's death and held the young princess tightly while she cried. The older woman had never said a word, just held her tightly and rocked back and forth until Vivi had no tears left and felt empty yet somehow better. Fox had then carried the princess back into the cabin she shared with Nami, tucked her back into her hammock and kissed her forehead before leaving the room. The next morning Vivi had tried to thank Fox, but the inscrutable woman had simply said that nobody should grieve alone and wandered away to find Zoro.

Still, the day's events had proved Fox was just as capable as the rest of her crew: she had protected Vivi from being trampled as they tried to prevent the fight from starting, kicked Mr. 2 in the face when he tried to trick them into coming with him and delayed the okama until Sanji arrived. Vivi had then been hustled off towards the palace, escorted up to the sandbag barrier the palace guards had set up.

"Aren't you coming, Fox?" the princess asked, pushing back the guards for a moment and turning back. Vivi thought the slight hitch in the woman's shoulders might be a chuckle.

"You'll be fine, Vivi-chan; my crew needs me more."

Vivi nodded firmly, remembering the contract signed in blood even as the other woman vanished back towards the fray. Her father had taken a great risk in order to protect her; she would have faith.

As the princess hurried towards the palace, a fox-faced ghost shadowed her from the rooftops. It followed until Crocodile revealed himself and King Cobra, still nailed to a wall, saw his daughter. Then it left: mission complete. No-one saw it.

* * *

The Phantom Fox slipped through the battlefield like a wraith, killing those marked as belonging to Baroque Works. Most fell without ever realising what had happened to them. She stalked the battlefield until she felt the life of Monkey D. Luffy slipping away, and hurried after him. She found him almost dead, lying outside the main temple complex. Sighing softly at his idiocy, she knelt beside him on the grass and set about the challenging task of healing him without changing his outward appearance in the slightest. It took several long, difficult minutes but by the end her captain was sleeping peacefully and almost completely well, discounting the various bleeding wounds. The masked spectre then used her power to poke his brain into wakefulness and hurried off to find the rest of her crew.

Luffy would be just fine; he was a D after all. More worrying was that she could feel Zoro slowing down as his body had trouble keeping up with his sheer bullheadedness and there was only so much she life-force she could channel through the thin connection she had to him.

She arrived at the clock tower just as Pell, the falcon who had taken her message to the king, took to the sky with a massive time bomb gripped in his feet. Bowing her head, the fox-masked assassin paid her respects to the man as it exploded, taking the time to mark on her mental map where the spontaneous recreation of his Devil Fruit had occurred. Then the rain fell.

She dropped down to ground level to shadow her crew, needing to keep them from harm until they could be healed. Not one was unscathed, but their enemies were dead; she'd ensured that all save Mr. 2 had lost their heads. She spared the okama because she'd found him snivelling about how Sanji had called him a friend, which was reason enough. The man hadn't seen her.

Once King and princess had left, the Straw-Hats collapsed and the masked assassin stepped out into the open.

* * *

Sergeant Tashigi was facing a serious dilemma. Her squad had rounded a corner and spotted the Straw-Hate pirate crew, then been knocked out from behind by a lone, fox-masked assailant. Said assailant, the infamous Phantom Fox, had drawn a sword and produced a letter with his other hand, which he offered to her. On reading the letter –a contract Captain Smoker had signed in blood– she realised she had a choice. She could abide by the contract Smoker had signed in light of him being her superior officer, or she could die.

What a way to die though, by one of the twelve supreme-grade swords; she'd never even seen one before and this was the legendary Zanchou, the Severing Tide. It was believed to be lost, yet here it was in the hands of a legendary assassin!

But…

"I can't see anyone," Tashigi said, keeping her eyes firmly on where the mask should have had eye-holes. "So I don't need to do anything."

The Phantom bowed, gathered the Straw-Hats together and vanished in a small flash of white.

The marine sergeant let out a slow, shaky breath and collapsed to her knees. That had been the most terrifying experience of her life, including watching Roronoa Zoro almost lose his arm on a whim. She had seen the Phantom Fox and lived!

* * *

A very full chapter.


	17. Tranquillity

**Tranquillity**

Zoro woke up very early the next morning to find his injuries mostly healed and Fox slumped on his chest, fast asleep.

"She didn't fix you up completely," Chopper explained, "as she said doing so would hamper your progress as a swordsman. She also said you can do light training so long as you don't reopen your wounds. If you do," the reindeer's glare suggested he believed Zoro was indeed foolish enough for it to be likely "then you are to stop at once and come back so we can patch you up. Reopening your injuries won't make you stronger, but will weaken you in the long run."

The swordsman glanced down at the huddle of floral shirt, plain leggings, white hair and bare feet sprawled on top of him and decided training could wait for a little while. After all, if Fox was as tired as she looked, any action that might wake her up was not to be taken lightly.

He ignored the little voice in his head that told him he was fooling himself; what did it know? He was just tired. Closing his eyes, Zoro drifted off, unconsciously wrapping his arms around the woman lying on top of him and turning on his side so he could tuck her under his chin.

In his sleep, Roronoa Zoro smiled.

* * *

Two days later Luffy finally woke up and the various celebrations planned for his victory over Crocodile started. First the banquet, which was distinctly uncivilised as Luffy was stuffing his face with everything he could reach regardless of whose plate it had been on, then a trip to the royal baths. The baths were truly wonderful, washing away all the various aches and pains training had left him. Zoro helped Chopper get clean, as the poor reindeer's fur and reduced reach made it difficult to properly soap himself.

Then Sanji had asked about the women's baths, where Nami, Vivi and Fox were. For some insane reason the king had actually answered the question in spite of Igaram's disapproval and they'd all gone to have a look. Zoro wasn't quite sure why he'd joined in; Vivi was just a kid and the evil witch of a navigator wasn't someone he wanted to ogle as she'd likely charge him for the privilege.

Fox… his brain had shorted out there for a moment.

Once he was peering over the top of the wall he could see Nami and Vivi, but not Fox. Where was she? He looked over towards the opposite end of the hot pool–

Dracule Lisska rose from the water, liquid streaming down her body as her knee-length white hair clung to her back and floated around her hips like silk filaments. She turned towards the noise, revealing stunning yet muscled curves, water droplets sliding slowly down every inch of exposed skin and her chin tilted up, light catching on flushed cheeks, the droplets on her eyelashes and the soft, happy glow in her eyes–

Zoro couldn't help the explosion of blood from his nose that blew him backwards to crash into the tiled floor of the men's baths but he knew that image was engraved in his mind forever. The echoing thumps and splashes on either side of him let him know that he wasn't the only person felled by Fox' beauty; there had been no survivors. Sanji looked completely catatonic, burbling feebly as his toes twitched.

There was a giggle from the top of the wall as Fox' head peeked over the top.

"You know if you wanted to see me naked you could have just asked," she teased with a wicked smile.

"What?" Zoro barked, pinching his nose as Sanji, Usopp, the king and Igaram all passed out from spontaneous blood loss.

Fox smiled, the expression darkly tempting. "Being raised a mermaid, I don't suffer from most of those pesky nudity issues that plague humanity," she said sweetly. "Usually I only wear clothing to avoid upsetting people."

It was too much for the green-haired nineteen-year-old's brain to take: Zoro fainted, hitting the deck just after Chopper and Luffy. The last thing he heard as he blacked out was Fox laughing.

* * *

The evening following the Bath-Incident-That-Will-Not-Be-Spoken-Of, Nami decided it was a good idea to leave. The marines had started moving and they needed to get off the island as quickly as possible. The Log Pose had reset, so they had somewhere to sail to as well. Then a palace servant showed up with a Den-Den Mushi, claiming Sanji had someone calling him.

It was the mad okama, Mr. 2 Bon Clay, who had moved the Straw-Hats' boat upstream on the Sandora river, out of the way of the marines.

With a heavy heart Vivi agreed to lend them the assistance of the Duck Squad and waved them off as they climbed out of the window with all their accumulated baggage. Fox waited until last.

"Vivi-chan?"

"Yes, Fox-san?"

The white-haired woman handed Vivi a familiar headdress. "I went looking for Pell's Devil Fruit, as it would have reformed with his death," she said simply. "But I found a wounded bird instead. He sends his regards and will be home soon. Goodbye, princess Nefertari Vivi of Alabasta."

As the enigmatic woman vanished into the night Vivi hugged the grubby fabric, tears trickling down her cheeks.

* * *

On a marine ship floating a considerable distance from Alabasta, the newly promoted Commodore Smoker pondered the situation. He had just heard from His long-time colleague and friend Captain Hina that the Straw-Hats had escaped. Looking at the bounty posters on the table, he considered. Logically, there was no connection between the Phantom Fox and the Straw-Hats. They hadn't recognised him and his presence had been due to his contract with King Cobra. Sparing their lives had likely been done to make it easier to keep an eye on princess Vivi, who would have been destraught at the deaths of those she considered friends.

But.

His gut told him there were no such things as coincidences.

Sighing, he stared at the three posters again as Tashigi joined him at the table. When his sergeant had returned to the ship from Aluberna, he had asked her if seen anyone the capital. She'd stiffened slightly, then looking him in the eye and said:

"I didn't see anybody, Captain. But I did see a sword."

"A sword, huh?" he remembered the assassin's sword, with its Kairoseki sheen and peculiar hum. "Any particular sword?"

"One of the twelve supreme-grade swords!" she'd gushed giddily as she hurried up the gangplank. "It was beautiful! The long-lost Zanchou, the only one of the supreme-grade swords forged from Kairoseki!"

"And you didn't bring it back with you?" he inquired dryly.

Tashigi had blushed. "It was really, really expensive…" she mumbled, eyes dropping to her feet.

"Well at least you know where to find it now," Smoker had relented, understanding what had occurred to his subordinate and quietly grateful that the infamous killer had spared her life.

Now staring at the photographs of Monkey D. Luffy, Roronoa Zoro and the masked assassin, he wondered what he was getting himself into chasing after the Straw-Hat. First the Legendary Dragon and now the Phantom Fox…

Who _was_ Monkey D. Luffy?

* * *

And that's Alabasta all wrapped up.


	18. Surprise

**Surprise**

At the moment the marine ships appeared on the horizon Fox had hurried below decks, sitting down cross-legged at the base of the mast with both hands planted flat on the boards. As the Going Merry was bombarded with black spears Chopper had pushed them back out and blocked the holes with planks, which the white-haired woman had used her Devil Fruit Powers to merge with the main body of the hull. It had been frantic, tiring and repetitive work, but it was well worth it when the little ship finally escaped its pursuers and she could rest for a little while.

"I'm sorry girl," Fox murmured soothingly, stroking the side of the hull as Chopper climbed up on deck. "You're trying so hard but we really aren't looking after you, are we? We ask so much of you, far more than we should and you give us your all but you're weakening. I'll do all I can to keep you going but your hull wasn't built to withstand the Grand Line, was it sweetheart?"

Fox' sensitivity to all things living enabled her to feel the soul of the Merry, a soul born from the love of her crew and nurtured by the white-haired woman's own constant care. That soul sent back to her a sense of fierce purpose, concern and selfless willing.

"I know darling, I know. You're with us to the very end," Fox whispered, a tear slipping down her cheek, "and you have a right to see us through as many adventures as you can stand. I'll get you as far as I can, I promise." Fox rose to her feet. "But now I have to see about our stowaway."

Merry's soul rippled slightly.

"I won't hurt her, not unless the captain agrees," Fox promised. Going Merry knew her better than most, almost as well as Swift Hunter did. "You are Luffy's ship after all."

With that she slipped up the ladder, darted through the pandemonium and placed the blade of her Kairoseki knife gently across Nico Robin's throat just as the woman settled in a deck chair.

* * *

Nico Robin, the Devil's Child with a 79,000,000 beli bounty on her head, froze in shock as the cool metal on her throat stole her strength and Devil Fruit Abilities away.

"Now that we have the upper hand," a tranquil, hard yet lyrically accented female voice said by her ear, "perhaps you could explain yourself to the captain?" The knife did not so much as twitch, proving her captor had a steady hand and considerable experience in holding people hostage.

Across from where she was sitting Robin could see the chef was torn between praising her captor for recognising the threat and berating the woman for holding another lady hostage, the long-nosed sniper and the reindeer had calmed down, the navigator looked pleased and the swordsman had crossed his arms, leant back against the outer wall of the storage room and seemed to be enjoying the show. Monkey D. Luffy's expression had not changed: he was still frowning at her.

"You're really weird, what do you want?" he demanded.

Robin swallowed. This was not how she'd pictured this going but at least she was being allowed to explain herself. "Let me join your crew," she said, the words more desperate than she'd intended them to be. The knife at her throat had drained her strength away to the point that she couldn't even move a finger and the former Miss All-Sunday felt terribly vulnerable. "You made me go on when I wanted to die," she continued, "that's all your fault and I have nowhere else to go. So let me stay on this ship."

"If it's like that there's nothing else for it," Luffy said. "It's okay. You can let her go now Fox."

The knife was removed and Robin turned to get a look at the woman who'd got the drop on her, a woman she hadn't realised was part of the Merry's crew at all.

She was a little older than the rest of the crew, probably in her early twenties, but her white hair and piercing golden eyes made her appear ageless. She was tall, taller than Robin herself by about an inch and wore a flowery mint-green halter top, brown deck trousers and fawn slippers. The knife had vanished, probably into her waistband as the halter top was not a garment you could hide a blade under.

"Why did you let her go!" the rest of the crew wasn't so happy with their captain's decision. Luffy just grinned.

"Don't worry! She's not as bad as you think!" he said brightly.

"Luffy is the captain," Fox said mildly, wandering away from Robin, "and I think our new crewmate knows the score."

Oh, Robin knew the score. She had met plenty of killers in her life on the run –killers working on both sides of the law– but none had ever been as serene, as professional or as strong as this one. She may have done assassination work to keep herself alive but now she felt like a complete amateur. The Going Merry didn't need an assassin; it already had one. Hopefully there would be space on board for an archaeologist.

* * *

As Usopp attempted to interrogate their new crewmate Zoro only had one question for Fox:

"Why?"

Fox shrugged, leaning into him as they both sat facing the figurehead, their backs to the Merry's mast. "Several reasons: firstly, acquisition of a defeated enemy's assets is accepted pirate practice; secondly, she honestly means Luffy no harm; thirdly, her ambitions are not at odds with his; fourthly, she fits."

"Fits?" Zoro repeated.

Fox flashed the swordsman a lopsided smile. "Luffy has picked for his crew a mismatched bunch of people who are all a little bit broken," she said sadly, "people whose only reason for living was to accomplish their dreams. Where would you be today, Roronoa Zoro, if you didn't have your ambition to drive you forward?"

Zoro didn't answer. Why did Fox have to be so damn perceptive?

"So you see, Nico Robin fits in rather well," Fox went on. "Don't worry though; I'm sure that between the two of us we can fend off any trouble she might bring to our door." With that the white-haired woman wandered away into the forward cannon deck that doubled as her bedroom, leaving Zoro to his thoughts. Deciding that worrying was pointless, he went to lift weights. Nico Robin might not mean Luffy any harm but there was a big difference between 'means no harm' and 'will not harm'.

* * *

Nico Robin meets Fox for the first time.


	19. Control

**Control**

Fox became aware of the presence of Marshall D. Teach some time before Mock Town became visible among the trees. She was deeply tempted to disregard her promise to Ace and take it as a sign that she should just kill the man and call it a day, but she knew chasing after the traitor _mattered_ to her friend. To her, killing Teach would just be another day, though there would be a certain vindictive satisfaction in balancing Thatch's death.

But she had promised, so instead she decided to take the opportunity to unload some of her possessions from Swift Hunter to the Merry. If there was a way to reach the islands in the sky she was sure Luffy would find it, and her beloved ship could not follow her into the clouds.

She was a little hurt that no-one had thought to ask her about the Sky Islands; she had done more actual navigation on the Grand Line than any of the others yet Nami seemed to prefer to wallow in ignorance than ask her opinion. Never mind that Fox could feel the living things up there, from the microscopic creatures that dwelt in soil to human beings… and a Devil Fruit User. She got a bad vibe off that one; the kind of vibe that prompted her to do pro bono work. Like Blackbeard, some people just needed killing. Curse that promise!

Setting aside her frustration, Fox dropped into her ship and set about putting together the things she would need for a trip to a tropical island, remembering to add her gear for making Eternal Poses. A Pose for a floating island in the sky would be a real rarity.

As she sifted through her wardrobe, she paused at one particular costume. It was appropriate, sort of, and reminded her both of Ace' teasing back in Alabasta and the man who'd had it made for her. She hadn't worn it since leaving Mysteria the last time as she didn't want it to get too worn, but now… the time seemed right. Carefully folding the costume and making sure the jewellery and associated accessories wouldn't get damaged, she finished padding out the bag with more normal tropical gear, survival necessities and weapons, just in case. She then considered Zanchou, hefting his weight thoughtfully before deciding against taking him; he wasn't particularly inconspicuous.

Climbing back on deck with her bag, she patted the deck as it reverted to rough skin. "Take care of yourself while I'm gone, okay? If you get lonely try to find Ace, but don't go too far."

Hunter growled happily at her and vanished beneath the waves. Fox then went into her cabin, dropped her bag and went to sleep, responding to the Merry's gentle tug on her Devil Fruit Power so the ship could better integrate the repairs Usopp and Chopper were making. She needed a lot more sleep than usual on the Going Merry nowadays; the poor girl really wasn't very well.

* * *

The ruckus when Luffy, Nami and Zoro got back to the Merry woke Fox from her doze, though she really wasn't coherent enough to be properly angry. Instead she lurched over to have a quick look at the two men's injuries.

"Not serious," she muttered, glowing hands running gently down the side of Luffy's face and up Zoro's neck. "Wha's t'fuss 'bout?"

"These two just let themselves beaten up!" Nami screeched. Fox glared at the navigator, making her flinch.

"So? They're guys. It comes with the territory."

Nami screamed in frustration.

Fox sighed, now feeling more awake than she really cared for. "What's the real issue, if you please Nami?"

Nami sagged. "When I mentioned the Sky Island everyone in the bar just laughed. What was so funny!"

Fox snorted. "So you found a bar full of morons; so what? There are people in the Blues who don't believe in giants, mermaids, island-eaters and Devil Fruit. That doesn't make those things any less real, does it?"

Nami calmed a little. "So there really is an island up there?"

"Yes."

"Why didn't you say so earlier?!" Nami roared.

Fox sent her the kind of look generally used to reprimand badly behaving small children. "You didn't ask me. You never ask my opinion on anything, Nami-san, despite knowing I have been sailing on the Grand Line by myself for over four years. What kind of behaviour is _that_ for a navigator?"

Nami gaped like a fish; Fox turned on her heel and returned to her cabin; Merry needed her help more than the arrogant little girl who thought she knew everything and refused to consider she could be wrong. She threw herself on her futon and closed her eyes, succumbing once more to the drain; she needed a hug. _I miss Ace so much right now._

* * *

Fox awoke as the ship was blasted by a wall of sheer sound, the Merry keening in pain at the onslaught. Deeming the ship's integrity to be more important than secrecy at this point, Fox swiftly allowed her body to melt into the boards, spreading her area of direct influence to encompass the entire ship. Not even her parents knew her Devil Fruit was in fact a Logia Type rather than a Paramecia; the secret had cost her dearly in blood time after time but she had always felt it was worth it. A Logia User's true vulnerability lay in their assurance that they could not be hit; a little pain was a small price to pay to remember that she too was human. Her teacher had always insisted that true strength could only be reached through pain and hard work and the allure of untouchability was nothing more than a lie: her Kairoseki blades had proved that time and again.

Feeling the ship reform, jagged tears in the boards closing and holes healing, Fox forced herself back into physical form and fell to the floor of her cabin, breathing heavily at the abrupt shift in her senses. Shutting her powers out suddenly like that after fully embracing them felt a bit like dying.

The door crashed open. "Fox? Fox!" Familiar fingers ran over her face.

"Zoro." Her eyes opened a crack to focus on the face of the swordsman kneeling over her.

"Are you alright? That was a pretty big thing you just did."

"Just. Feel. Stretched." Fox managed. It was the abruptness of what she had done that made her queasy and shaky rather than the amount of energy spent. Of course, Zoro didn't know that.

"I'll tell dartboard-brow to make you something to eat," he said, face concerned as he lifted her off the floor and placed her on her bed. "Don't worry about the rest of the damage; Usopp will fix it."

"Okay." Fox rolled on her side and trembled, body pulled up into a ball. Allowing her power to take full reign was exhilarating, but the aftershocks were severe if she cut herself off too fast. Closing her eyes, she let the power bloom again, then smoothly contracted it inwards, reducing her sphere of perception down to the usual five miles, then in again to just one. Her teacher had been right: to do a thing well, you first had to do it slowly. Then when you could do it slowly, you did it a thousand times more to make sure you had it down and only then did you start working on speed.

Fox hadn't quite cracked speed yet, but it would come. Ironic really that she was better at using Haki than her own Devil Fruit Power. Then again, she'd been using Haki for longer.

After eating the generous meal Sanji brought to her, Fox did not wake again until two monkey-faced pirates and a man with a chestnut-shaped growth on the top of his head started working on the Merry. They were very surprised to see her, but a short explanation of her abilities soon settled the matter and the trio were delighted to have her help reinforcing the ship so it could be sailed up into the clouds. The man in charge, one Montblanc Cricket, was happy to tell her where the rest of the crew was and about the things she had missed while sleeping. Fox asked a lot of questions about the people and culture of the civilisation Montblanc Noland had met, which said explorer's descendent was happy to expound at length about.

"So what's the bird they're looking for look like?" she eventually asked.

"Purple with light green wingtips and tail with a purple and yellow beak and crest," Cricket told her. "Its' call is a bit like–"

"Choooooh!"

"– that." Cricket blinked as the bird landed on Fox' head. "How did you do that?"

"Live things like me and smart animals like me more than most," Fox shrugged, taking care not to dislodge the bird. "I think it's connected to my Devil Fruit Power." She yawned. "Mind if I retire for the night? It's been a long day."

"That's fine," Cricket assured her. "We'll have your ship ready in no time now!"

Fox went to bed after making sure the South Bird was comfortable perching on the capstan and slept like the dead.

* * *

She woke an indeterminate amount of time later to the sound of a fight and the sense that there were people who enjoyed breaking things in the vicinity. Her pupils spiralling down into points in a way that made her look disturbingly like her father, Fox grabbed a set of knives and set out to share her pain. It was too early in the morning for this shit.

Fox' first action on taking in the cowards who were trying to shake down Montblanc Cricket for his gold was to show them how out of their league they were. So, just as the pirate with the knife was about to strike the chestnut-headed man down she let loose, the full force of her irritation at being woken channelled into the Colour of the Conquering King. For a moment there was absolute, blessed silence, then with soft, choking sounds all the pirates save the blond captain collapsed into limp heaps. Not very impressive really, but she had only just woken up and her focus wasn't fantastic. Besides, the Colour of the Conquering King was her worst ability.

"Who are you?" the captain asked, a little shaky on his feet.

"Who wants to know," Fox growled.

"I am Bellamy the Hyena!"

"A scavenger. Perfect," Fox snarled sarcastically. "Run back into the hole you crawled out of, pest."

Bellamy, face a mask of fury, lunged at her. She dodged easily, moving away from the Merry so as not to damage her. Bellamy lunged again, this time with springs for legs. Fox ignored his shouted boasts, slipping aside just far enough to avoid being hit as she shoved a dagger between his ribs. It was common steel rather than Kairoseki, but it would still slow him down.

"Take your crew and piss off, dog," she told him flatly, brutally twisting the knife before yanking it out again and flaring her Haki threateningly. "Or are you going to stay so I can play some more?"

Bellamy proved himself to truly be a coward and fled, but not before grabbing a heavy-looking bag. She kicked his crew awake so they could run after him, tossing a knife idly in one hand as she watched them leave.

"There's always somebody nastier than you are on the Grand Line, Bellamy!" She shouted after him as Montblanc Cricket came up beside her. "Try to keep that in mind!"

"Who are you?" Cricket asked quietly.

Fox bared her teeth at him. "Someone who _hates_ being woken up early in the morning."

* * *

A small change and some more background.


	20. Ascent

**Ascent**

Luffy and his nakama returned a few hours before dawn, dirty and tired but without a South Bird. Their ill-temper however turned to concern when they found their hosts bruised and bleeding and the clearing looking rather bashed about.

"Don't worry about the South Bird," the diamond-head guy told them, "one took a shine to your other crewmate and is sleeping in her cabin."

"What happened?" Luffy asked.

Cricket grimaced. "It's nothing; don't worry about it."

"The gold was taken!" Nami shouted, rushing out of the house.

"It isn't really important," diamond-head insisted. "Miss Fox drove them off before they could do any real damage."

"Fox? Where is she? Is she alright?" Luffy asked.

Diamond-head wavered. "She's fine: didn't get a scratch. And she's gone back to sleep now."

"Back to sleep? Ah. They woke her up then," Chopper deduced. As one, the crew winced in sympathy.

"Look, it doesn't matter: the ship's almost finished now and I will send you to the sky no matter what!" Diamond-head declared.

Zoro looked at his captain, who wasn't smiling right now. "Want my help?"

Luffy waved a hand. "I can do it alone." He ignored the outburst from diamond-head; this was important. "I will be back before dawn."

* * *

Back in a tavern in Mock Town, Bellamy and his crew were rather subdued. They hadn't managed to find a single bounty poster that resembled the white-haired woman who'd destroyed them so effortlessly, so the Hyena had decided she had likely been a lower-ranking member of one of the Yonko's crews whom their fight had disturbed: very strong but not bounty-worthy. With this in mind they were drinking hard to forget the embarrassment and celebrating the theft of the gold.

At least, they were until a drunk staggered in claiming the dumb kid in a straw hat from the day before was worth one hundred million and the green-haired punk sixty million. Suddenly the idea of the bitch from earlier being on the kid's crew seemed a lot more plausible.

Especially when that same 'dumb kid in a straw hat' arrived in town looking for the gold and defeated Bellamy with a single punch.

By the time the kid had found the gold, Bellamy's first mate 'Big Knife' Sarkies had recovered a bit and thought to ask, "That white-haired woman, is she on your crew?"

Luffy grinned. "Yep!"

"Why doesn't she have a bounty?"

Luffy paused, then repeated what Fox had told him when he had asked her that same question: "It's hard to get a bounty when there's nobody left to report you to the marines."

Sarkies swallowed hard; they'd clearly gotten off easy with this monster crew. "Where are you going?"

"Where?" Luffy repeated, flexing his fingers before pointing upwards, "the sky!"

* * *

When they arrived on what Nami called 'the sea of the sky' Zoro's first action was to check on Fox. The white-haired woman was slumped quietly by the railings with her arms tangled in the rigging.

"Fox?"

"Hmm? Hn?" Fox hummed absently, then giggled. The sound was extremely disconcerting.

"Chopper?" the swordsman asked, raising his voice a little, "Can you come and check on Fox, please?"

The little reindeer hurried over from where Luffy and Robin were trying to fish Usopp out of the cloud sea and examined the woman, who was now humming a rambling little ditty. The pupils of her eyes were fully dilated and she seemed drunk.

"I think she has altitude sickness," the reindeer said as Fox wrapped her arms around Zoro's waist, buried her face in his harimaki and went to sleep. "It should pass in a few days."

After quickly dispatching the cloud monster that had followed Usopp up from the depths –not easy with Fox cuddling him– Zoro carried her into her cabin, tidied up the mess made by sailing up the knock-up stream and laid her on her futon. Getting her to let go was the hardest bit, but fortunately the altitude sickness had cancelled out her irritability. Possibly by destroying her ability to focus.

"Sailing high, high, high in the sky," she sing-songed lightly as she woke up, grip around his waist unrelenting while her face remained buried in his stomach. "Up to islands that can fly, hmmm, hm hm, Pretty trees!"

"Can you let me go, please?" Zoro asked patiently, trying not to think about how utterly adorable she was being now and how ridiculous the very concept of 'adorable' should have been to him.

She cocked her head on one side, revealing a single dark, gold-rimmed eye. "Do I get a kiss?"

Zoro choked. Fox didn't seem to notice, as she continued: "I like kisses. And hugs. They show people care. I don't get many of them."

Zoro struggled with himself for a moment then gave up. "Let go of me and I'll kiss you," he bargained.

Wide suspicious eyes peered up at him from his waistline. "Promise?"

"Promise." Zoro resigned himself to the inevitable slow death Mihawk was bound to bring down on him for this.

Fox let go. Zoro tucked her in properly, then bent over her and gently pressed his lips to hers. "Sleep well, Snowball-chan. Get well soon."

"See you, Green-kun," she mumbled, breathing evening out as she dropped off again. Zoro almost tripped over thin air at the nickname, then hurried outside to see what Chopper was panicking about now. He wasn't sure whether he was hoping or dreading Fox remembered this when she woke up sober.

She'd tasted like sake and Sea King.

* * *

Fox' giddiness was partly due to the height, but most of it was from her abruptly heightened awareness of the beings living in the cloud. From sea level she'd known they were there, but now she was in the cloud and far away from the faintly deadening presence of the sea they clamoured against her senses, making her feel giddy and warm. Everything was so different, so big, so vibrant it felt like that time she'd drunk a whole bottle of champagne on a dare when she was sixteen. The dare had been Shanks' doing and her father had almost killed the redhead when Fox had gone through with it. Her hiccups had made the Yonko's crew roar with laughter, but they'd laughed even more when she'd kissed their captain while under the influence and Mihawk had drawn his sword. It had taken several hours for her father to calm down but Shanks had still been chuckling when the dark-haired swordsman stalked off.

By the time she'd adjusted to the different feel of the life up in the clouds they were even higher up and she had to breathe deeply and slowly to help her body adapt quickly. She was tempted to rejoin the rest of the crew outside as they sounded like they were having fun, but now her senses had settled she could sense a malevolent presence above them: the Devil Fruit User who'd pinged her radar earlier. He was using the Colour of Observation, which she instinctively hid herself from even while asleep by making herself 'look' like a plant to Haki users. It was a surprisingly effective trick and one that had enabled her to take by surprise even the strongest of pirates. When among friendly Haki users like Whitebeard or Shanks' crews she turned the camouflage off so as not to startle them into attacking her; she had another version she used in crowded places that made her indistinguishable from the people around her.

Fox liked messing about with Haki. The possibilities were far greater than just the three Colours most people thought it was limited to. A sword had more uses than just for stabbing people, so why not refine your Haki use to see what else it was good for? The Colour of Observation was just as good for hiding yourself as it was for reading others' moves and the Colour of Armament could be used to make a normal person's body as insubstantial as a Logia User rather than for making oneself so solid you could _hit_ Logia Users. The Colour of Armament was essentially about self-perception, so Fox had found a way to make herself invisible. She couldn't understand why nobody else had ever tried it.

The Colour of the Conquering King was the hardest one to play around with, mostly because while Fox had the genetic propensity for it she didn't have the right attitude to use it properly. She had been trained between the ages of nine and fifteen to both be demure, accepting and obedient and to kill ruthlessly. As a result of this schizoid conditioning she wasn't interested in crushing other people's wills: she either put up with them or she killed them. Her own twist on the Colour of the Conquering King was what her father had termed 'the Colour of the Ruling Queen' and it actually killed weak-willed people by scaring them to death. She could use the Colour of the Conquering King, but only when in the mood to make people suffer such as when they interrupted her nap. As such, it wasn't very potent.

She was also working on something she called 'the Colour of Strife' which rather than crushing people's wills buoyed them up so they started questioning authority and the status quo. She had big plans for that, most of them involving marines or Donflamingo. She owed that bastard way more trouble than she'd caused him so far.

Sighing, Fox opened her bag and removed the outfit she'd brought along specially. It would take a while to put on and she wanted it to look perfect; it had been a very special gift for all the embarrassment that had accompanied it. She hadn't packed her killing suit, so she would have to settle for looking like a goddess while investigating the rather insane-feeling Devil Fruit User.

* * *

The nicknames are 'Yukidama' and 'Midori'; the latter is according to Wictionary acceptable for both boys and girls. Fox means it as a reference to fresh growing things rather than just the colour.


	21. Hunt

**Hunt **

Fox was pinning the last of her hair ornaments in place when the crew returned to the ship, and was straightening her belt and making sure her skirt swirled properly when Zoro pushed open the door of her cabin.

Fox..?" The swordsman's voice trailed off and his eyes widened as he took in her appearance. "You…"

Fox smiled, doing a slow twirl so he could appreciate the full experience. "It was a present," she said simply, "and I don't get many opportunities to wear it unless I'm visiting the people who gave it to me."

Zoro swallowed hard. "It looks good on you?" he offered hesitantly.

Fox smiled radiantly; she always felt a bit strange in this outfit, like she was becoming someone else. To have a third party who was not totally biased tell her she looked good was reassuring. "Thank-you. Oh, and thank-you for earlier as well."

Zoro flushed. "You remember that?"

Fox stepped forwards and slumped slightly so she could rest her head on his shoulder, bracing one hand against his chest. "Mm-hm. I hate to think what would have happened if Sanji had been the one to find me in that condition."

"Dumbass cook," the green-haired swordsman growled into her hair, one hand wrapping around her waist protectively.

Loud voices filtered down from the deck: it seemed that they were in trouble. Again. "Stay out of sight," Zoro told her gruffly: "They don't know you're here yet so you aren't in trouble unless they see you."

"That's very sweet of you," Fox told him, smiling warmly up at him as he let go of her.

"Oh, and Zoro?" Fox called after the flustered swordsman headed out the door. "I wouldn't mind being kissed by you again."

Zoro shut the door of her cabin with a little more force than was strictly necessary. Fox giggled; he was cute when he was confused.

* * *

Defeating the White Berets was easy; however deciding what to do when the Going Merry was abducted by a giant shrimp with Zoro, Robin, Nami, Chopper and Fox on board was not. The swordsman suggested the others on deck abandon ship –he and Fox could deal with the situation just fine– but the giant, hungry fish behind them were another matter. Robin deduced that this was the beginning of the 'Heaven's Judgement' they had been threatened with.

"What about Fox?" Chopper fretted. "She's sick!"

"She isn't, actually," Zoro said shortly. "I told her to remain hidden as they haven't noticed she's here yet."

"Of course;" Robin mused. "She wasn't on the photograph, nor did she disembark with us. They only mentioned seven fines so they clearly don't know about her."

"What I can't believe is that Luffy didn't correct them when those White Berets said there were seven of us," Nami muttered. "He's been really insistent about Fox being part of his crew since we bumped into Ace."

"Well, she is our master of disguise," Chopper pointed out. "Perhaps he thought they hadn't recognised her?"

Zoro felt that was depressingly likely, considering Luffy's rather idiosyncratic thought processes.

* * *

Upon learning that the people on the ship were going to be sacrificed to the god on Upper Yard, Sanji lost it.

"Sacrifices! Nami-san and Robin-chan and Fo-" he was abruptly cut off as Luffy punched him across the room. "Why you–!"

"Shh!" Luffy hissed loudly in the chef's ear. "They don't know about my master of disguise!"

Sanji quickly thought back and realised Luffy was right: she hadn't been on deck when the wrinkled angel had taken their picture, hadn't explored the cloud beach with them and the White Berets had only mentioned seven criminals. Fox was safe!

"She's probably looking around the island right now, disguised as an angel," Luffy went on seriously, "so don't worry about her!"

Sanji was instantly felled by the mental picture of Fox, her white hair hanging loose to her knees with little pom-pom antenna on her head and white wings emerging from the back of a skimpy dress. Then he remembered that there were two other women to worry about. Their host Pagaya quickly explained about the punishments for criminals: the Sacrifices would be taken to the altar and held hostage until those criminals going through the Trial were judged.

With this in mind, it wasn't too hard for Sanji, Luffy and Usopp to come up with a plan to rescue the lovely ladies. Oh, and Chopper and the marimo.

Conis-chan the lovely angel escorted them up to Angel Island's port and showed them a suitable boat, but then Luffy noticed the girl's nervousness and it was revealed that she had been the one to report them as being criminals; she was then almost struck down from on high by a massive lightning bolt. Conis-chan and Luffy were saved through the surprise intervention of Gan Fall, the 'Knight of the Sky' they had met down on the White Sea, who promised to protect the angel from harm while the three pirates went looking for their friends in Upper Yard.

Sanji hoped the ladies were alright; the shitty swordsman and Chopper could look after themselves.

* * *

Zoro was deeply unimpressed. He had been trying to see if they could swim across the sea cloud to reach the massive forest surrounding the pool the altar was located in and a flat shark-thing had tried to eat him: its mouth was almost big enough to swallow him whole, swords and all. Thankfully he had a pair of goggles that made it possible for him to see even when the shark dropped back into the sea cloud around the altar; more importantly, they made it easier for him to punch the dumb fish unconscious for attempting to eat him.

"So we can't swim out," Zoro grumbled as he climbed the steps back up to the ship. "So where are we? Other than somewhere in Upper Yard." He wrung the water out of his shirt thoughtfully. "It seems like we've been taken to a dangerous place."

"I wonder if Heaven's Judgement is to let us starve in this place," Robin mused.

"Would something that normal really be done by god?" Zoro asked as Chopper threw him a dry tank top.

"I don't know," Robin said candidly. "I've never met him."

"Well we can't put the ship back in the water in this state," Zoro reasoned, "So if you would help repair it Chopper, that would be great!" he said 'help' because Fox was already doing her best to mend what could be mended, though she had warned him that, as the Going Merry was not a living being, there was a limit to how much damage she could fix.

Zoro then expressed his intent to go looking for the so-called 'god' of the island, and suggested the rest stay where they were and wait for Luffy. Zoro didn't actually believe the guy _was_ a god; Fox had mentioned there being a strong Devil Fruit User up here and it seemed likely that that guy was passing himself off as a deity. Besides, Zoro didn't believe in gods.

Robin wanted to join the expedition to look for ancient ruins to go with the altar and the archaeologist's mention of gems tempted Nami into coming along too. Zoro just let them; he wasn't the captain and he was more worried about Fox, who was napping in her cabin again. He'd finally spotted the correlation between how damaged the Merry was and how long Fox spent sleeping deeply and didn't like it at all; she was keeping their ship together almost singlehandedly and it was wearing on her. Hopefully they'd be able to join up with the rest of the crew and get of this island before things got too bad for Fox. Oh, and find a decent shipwright as well.

* * *

"Chopper?"

The reindeer turned. "Oh, you woke up Fox. Are you-" he blinked. "Wow! You look lovely!"

Fox smiled. "You really think so?" she asked, smoothing down the calf-length skirt. "I don't wear it much but it just seems appropriate today."

Chopper had to agree that the swishy skirt, strings of multicoloured pearls and heavy, jewel-encrusted gold ornamants did seem very appropriate considering the massive stone altar they were on and the thick jungle surrounding them.

"Where did you get it?" he asked, sitting down on the steps to the top deck.

"Well, that's some story," Fox mused, "but I think you'd like it. It was given to me as a gift by a very sweet young man whose island I inadvertantly rescued from a famine."

"Wow!" Chopper was very impressed. "With your Devil Fruit Ability, right?"

"Yes. The islanders proclaimed me their patron goddess of crops and healing and insisted I dress the part," she smiled fondly, "hence the getup."

"It looks very, er, godly," the reindeer offered.

"I know; I almost refused it but the charming man who made it for me insisted it was really a gift to the islanders, so they could feel proud of me and my accomplishments by proxy," Fox explained. "He told me that while physical things make good tokens, true appreciation comes from the heart. Then he kissed me."

"He what!" Chopper couldn't believe it.

Fox giggled. "My father tried to kill him for his audacity; he now has a scar all along the top of his chest where he nearly lost his head."

"How is that funny!"

"He spent all of that day running away from my father despite being a very strong warrior in his own right, claiming that he could not raise a hand to a parent of his goddess as it would be blasphemous to do so. He also proclaimed that it was the duty of all men to worship the divine, which I clearly was, and he had merely been expressing his gratitude for my largesse. Eventually my father decided to let him live, possibly out of sheer contrariness."

Chopper chuckled. "Actually that is kind of funny. I can see Usopp doing that."

Fox sighed. "My title on that island is: The Mighty and Benevolent Daughter of the Blue-Tressed Storm and the Hawk Warlord of the Sea, the Bountiful Lady of Life and Hope, Rokuseizon the Beautiful'. How's that for a mouthful?"

"Wow!" Chopper breathed, starry-eyed. "That's amazing!"

"Thank-you," Fox smiled. "Now do you mind if I wander off? I'd like to explore too."

* * *

The 'goddess incident' mentioned by Ace explained.


	22. Patience

**Patience**

A poor assassin will chase after their target until they kill it. A good assassin will learn their target's habits and strike them down while they go about their daily business. A truly excellent assassin will find a place they know their target will be at some point in the future and wait patiently for their victim to come to them.

Fox was a truly excellent assassin and she had found a place Enel the so-called 'god' would be coming back to. She had explored the ruined city during the afternoon, made three Eternal Poses as the dusk fell and had found the big golden bell Montblanc Cricket had told her about late in the night. Now, on board the massive golden airship, she hid and waited, patient as a spider.

Patient as Death itself.

* * *

Zoro had no real idea of where Fox had vanished to but unlike the rest of the crew he knew she was more than capable of taking care of herself. He also had a feeling –call it a hunch– that she had something in mind for Enel that would prove fatal to the god's health. In the meantime, looking for the gold Nami was so keen for them to find would be a fine way to pass the time. Luffy wasn't worried about Fox either, but that was based on faith rather than knowledge of her capabilities. Sanji was worried, Usopp had panicked but was now pretending he'd never been worried at all and Chopper, Nami and Robin were all keen for her to be found.

The swordsman suspected Nami just didn't want the other woman to find any gold before she herself did; the navigator was horribly jealous of Fox no matter how much she denied it. It was obvious to anyone with eyes how Nami tried to pretend Fox wasn't there at all and it was something Luffy was going to have to deal with sooner rather than later. The Shichibukai's daughter had let the silent animosity slide so far, but the scolding Fox had dealt to the navigator at Mock Town had made it clear that the older woman was not blind to the situation in the slightest.

Zoro had realised back then that Fox' non-reaction to Nami was much like his own refusal to play along when faced with Bellamy's mockery: it wasn't that she didn't care, but that it wasn't worth it to make a fuss. Of course on some level Nami realised she was being shown up which just made the navigator angrier.

Of course, he mused as he dodged up a tree to escape the massive snake that was now chasing him, Luffy, Robin and Chopper, having Fox with them would probably have made exploring rather easier.

* * *

When a person is waiting to kill another person, they need to remain calm and focussed on their goal, so as not to miss the opportunity when it arises. On the other hand, when you have hours upon hours to wait it is only human to let your mind wander a bit.

In order not to let her mind wander too far, Fox had expanded her Colour of Perception to match the range of her Devil Fruit Ability, making her aware not just of what was living on the island below her and its relative health but giving her insight into their abilities, personalities and purpose. She was also keeping track of Enel, who was quite possibly the most arrogant, insensitive man-child she'd ever had the displeasure of observing. She was channelling what energy she could to Usopp and Sanji but they'd never been this seriously injured before now so she could only send a little at a time. Fortunately both were tough, as was Nami, so they would all survive as long as Enel didn't take them seriously and said 'god' did not seem inclined to.

Luffy was fine, if a bit muffled… ah, the cute snake she'd met earlier had eaten him. Zoro was fine, Chopper had just beaten one of the priests and Robin was getting thrown around but wasn't anywhere near dead yet. All in all, nobody needed rescuing badly enough for her to abandon her position.

Well, nobody she knew at least. A lot of locals were getting sliced, diced and bashed or char-grilled by one-another and Enel respectively.

Time meant nothing to her when she was like this, locked in an artificial tranquillity as she waited for the perfect moment. Beneath her several combatants gathered in a free-for-all at the centre of the ruins on the lowest of the elevated levels centred around the beanstalk and did battle. One by one the fighters fell until only the snake –with those alive within it– Zoro and the fiercest of the local fighters were still standing. Then Enel brought the cloud they were standing on crashing down into the lower level of the ruins, down where Robin was.

Fox did not move even as the battle below raged on in this new arena, even as her crewmates were defeated. If she intervened now, her victory would not be certain. Better to wait. Beneath the thick blanket of cold logic and a truly ferocious work ethic however, her heart wept for her friends' pain.

_Wait. All things come to those who wait._

She was however now omnipresent enough in the so-called 'Upper Yard' to prevent those who had fallen from dying, for a little while at least. Hopefully most would recover enough in the next hour not to need to lean on her remain among the living, or else she would have to chose to either become more tied up here than she cared to be or to detach herself and let them die. Most of those leaning on her were the Shandians Enel had fried and she was getting attached. Then Zoro went down.

_Soon._

Being in her true Logia form, Fox didn't feel the drain from the dozens of injured people she was sustaining as her energy was limitless. That didn't mean she couldn't feel the pain those she was connected to were experiencing.

Then, finally, Enel entered the airship. With Nami, but a person couldn't have everything. She'd have to wait until Nami was safe until going through with her mission as it was likely the ship would crash when she took out the so-called god. Then Luffy showed up. As a rubber-man, he just so happened to be lightning proof; Enel's expression was hilarious.

Unfortunately Enel was a capable warrior and not limited to his Devil Fruit Ability, not to mention his skills with the Colour of Observation, and he was able to beat Luffy down for long enough to get the airship started. As with all victories against Monkey D. Luffy however, it proved transient. After getting thrown around some more Enel decided discretion was the better part of valour and threw Luffy off the airship, attached to a massive ball of gold.

_Not yet._

Waiting for a kill at the level Fox was working at involved the Colour of Observation with a precision most people never reached. As it was, to all intents and purposes she _did not exist_ until the moment came to strike. Caught in the dizzyingly changeable world of what-might-be, she had no intent and no purpose until the time came for the kill.

Fox had killed a lot of people over the years and other than the debacle that earned her the record-breaking bounty, every last person she had assassinated had been taken completely by surprise. So she waited, even as Sanji and Usopp boarded the flying ship.

Robin's recovery and decision to move those injured away from the airship and the darkening clouds around it was noticed but not acted on. Zoro was fine, the Shandians would be and the moment was coming.

Usopp, Nami and Sanji were all gone now, the airship faltering after the chef's sabotage. Luffy was climbing the beanstalk after the bell and he and Enel would be meeting again.

_Not. Yet._

The lightning almost made her consider attacking prematurely; so much wanton destruction! But no. She had trained for four long, arduous years in the Way of the Assassin and been declared a Master. She would do her teacher proud.

_Not…_

Nami arrived at the top just before Luffy returned after being launched off by Enel, then the mad 'god' exploded a massive thundercloud, laughing manically all the while. Angel Island was completely eradicated; thankfully all the natives had gotten off first. Then Zoro and the Shandian –was his name Wiper?– tried to cut the beanstalk and got zapped by Enel again. Fox had to pour quite a lot of herself into both, especially after what the idiot local had done to his arm.

_Yet…_

Luffy dived into the thundercloud after Enel had loaded the bell onto his airship and Fox could feel the perfect moment approaching. As Luffy knocked the bell off the roof of the barge and fell back down to earth, as the deep, clear peal echoed through her bones, the moment arrived.

_**Now.**_

Fox struck, Kairoseki blades and force of will driving her into the false god and over the edge of the teetering vessel. Beneath her feet braced against his spine Enel choked as the points of her knives pierced his heart and spleen; she twisted the blades first left, then right to widen the wounds, encouraging his body to bleed out. She didn't care that she was freefalling, didn't care that the ground was a long way away. She was a hawk on the stoop, an eagle on the wing. She was Death and she flew.

Down.

Down.

Down.

Into the ruins of the city Enel had despoiled.


	23. Goddess

**Goddess**

As Wiper swayed on his feet to the sound of the great golden bell, something plummeted to the ground in the square in front of him, landing with a horrible sound of crunching bones and a cloud of dust. Then something bounced out of the dust across the stones, rolling to a stop at Wiper's feet. He looked down at it.

It was Enel's head.

Wiper remembered that only a few hours ago he had sworn that today he would cut off Enel's head. He looked up as something rose from the dissipating dust cloud, tall and pale and poised as a falcon on the wing.

It was a woman, the tallest he'd ever seen with hair as white as cloud and eyes as bright and fierce as a bird of prey, wearing clothing similar to that of his people: an apron skirt spit up to the hip in shades of blue with a rippling white edge that flowed up her body to fasten over one shoulder with a large golden brooch in the shape of birds. Wrapped three times around her waist was a jewelled belt in blues and greens set in gold in the shape of a great serpent and on her arms and around her ankles were more golden bands and others made of ivory and bone. Her hair was wrapped into two knee-length bangs at the front with strings of pearls in dozens of colours while the rest flowed freely down her back beneath a crown shaped like leaves of all kinds. In her hands were a pair of blades and she was shaking the blood from them even as she walked towards him.

Being a Shandian, Wiper had never believed that gods walked the earth. However now he was seriously reconsidering the possibility. The apparition resheathed the blades under the back of her skirt and smiled at him:

"Greetings Wiper, warrior of Shandora. May I heal you?"

Wiper blinked, and then toppled forwards. The goddess caught him. "I'll take that as a yes," she said, laughter running under her words as she placed glowing white hands on his back and broken shoulder and stole away the pain.

* * *

Wiper awoke to darkness, laughter, the smell of fire and not a single injury remaining on his body. Sitting up, he turned to look around urgently.

"Chief! Where is the golden bell? Where is the woman?" he looked around at the other people sleeping near him, Skypieans and Shandorans alike, some of whom he had last seen suffering from terrible injuries. Nobody here seemed to have anything more serious than bruises and cuts.

"Take it easy, Wiper," his Chief reassured him as he helped the young warrior to his feet. "Right now, among us, there is not a single person who desires the continuation of the war."

"But what of the woman?" Wiper persisted, eyes darting here and there among the people partying outside in front of a massive bonfire. Even the Master of the Sky was joining in.

"Woman? You mean the healer?" the Chief asked.

"Yes!" Wiper hissed. "She killed Enel, then asked me if I wanted to be healed! Who is she?"

The Chief shrugged. "I do not know. The citizens of the Blue Sea seem to know her well and she hit the swordsman over the head for not taking better care of himself. But then again, she also hit Braham when he refused to sit still for her." The old man paused. "But if you want to know where she is, then look at the dancers."

Wiper looked. There, among the shadows was a whirl of flashing gold and fire reflecting on white, moving from one person to the next in the opposite direction to the rest of the dancers.

"She said you would be well enough to join in when you woke up so you may as well go," the Chief told him, "but she wished me to inform you that if you played around with Reject Dials ever again she would hunt you down and cut your arm off. I think she meant it."

Wiper, his head whirling with new and confusing ideas, headed through the party. All around him people who only yesterday had been bitter enemies were laughing, drinking and dancing together. Over to one side he could see Brahan and the Blue Sea swordsman engaging in a drinking contest with a crowd cheering them on and even the wolves were joining in. Then a pair of hands grabbed his and he was spun around to face laughing golden eyes.

"Who _are_ you?" he asked, shouting over the laughter as he took back control of the dance and spun around the fire with her, stamping and jumping.

"Ask the reindeer!" she called back to him as she caught another man's hand and vanished again. "He knows!"

Wiper extricated himself from the dancing some time later to hunt down the small, horned creature in a hat that was apparently a reindeer. The warrior found it telling stories to the children.

"… and that is how we escaped the island eater!" the little creature finished. His audience 'ooohed' and 'aahed' appreciatively.

"Do you know any stories about the white-haired woman?" Wiper asked, seating himself a short distance to one side of Aisa, who was near the front of the group.

"Fox?" The reindeer paused.

"Her name is Fox?"

"Actually, I don't think it is," the creature admitted. "She said we could call her that but she never said it was her name. I do know one of her other names though and it has a great story to go with it!"

With that, the odd animal launched into a story of an island wracked with famine and the woman who had ended it and been made their goddess. Wiper listened carefully, both to the long, involved title that had been bestowed upon her and the words of the warrior who had dedicated himself to her service. At the end the children erupted into whispers.

"We should give her presents too!"

"We should say thank-you to her for helping us!"

"Especially for healing the areas Enel struck with lightning!" Aisa agreed.

"She did what?" Wiper asked.

Aisa smiled up at him. "She made the trees grow back where the lightning had destroyed them. I watched! It was beautiful and she glowed all over!"

"Well, I'm sure if you gave her a kiss she'd be very grateful," the reindeer told the young Shandoran. Aisa smiled brilliantly and hurried off to find the woman the story referred to as 'Bountiful Lady of Life and Hope, Rokuseizon the Beautiful'. Wiper walked in a different direction, intent on getting a second opinion on the story from his trusted companions.

* * *

It took a while for Wiper to track down Kamakiri, Braham, Laki and Genbo; he didn't manage to get them all together until the next morning. When he did manage to pull them aside to tell them the story they all pondered it for a while.

"We should ask her," Laki said eventually, "and have Aisa with us when we do. She will be able to tell if the woman tells the truth."

"And if it is true?" Wiper asked.

Laki grinned widely. "Then you all need to decide whether or not to risk her father's wrath in expressing your gratitude. She healed every one of us herself and did not rest until all were well again; that makes her deserving of thanks."

They found her sitting some distance from the party, cooing over the giant snake.

"Have you come to say hello to Nola-chan?" the woman asked as they approached.

"Nola… chan?" Kamakiri repeated faintly.

"Yep! Calgara named her!" the woman said, lounging on the purring serpent's head. "She remembers Noland, too! That's why she loves the bell so much!"

"You can speak to her?"

"Yes; she's a kind of water snake and I speak all the tongues of the sea," the woman admitted candidly.

"Goddess-sama!" Aisa burst out. "I'm so grateful for everything you've done! Thank-you!" she dashed over to where the white-haired woman was sliding off the snake to the ground and tugged on the skirt of her dress. "Can I kiss you?"

The woman smiled, the expression curving her eyes up into happy slits as she knelt down. "I would be honoured, Aisa-chan."

The little girl braced her hands on the possible-goddess' shoulders and kissed her firm on the lips, then burst into tears. The woman hugged her.

"There, there, Aisa-chan. It's alright."

"I'm not sad!" the little girl bawled. "I'm just so happy!"

"Well, that's good then," the woman said, kissing Aisa on the forehead. "Now I'm sure there is more food being cooked right now, so how about you find some to put aside for me before it all gets eaten."

"I will, goddess-sama!" Aisa hurried off.

"So, what do you warriors five want then?" the woman asked, seating herself on one of the blocks of fallen masonry.

"I asked the reindeer for a story," Wiper said bluntly. "He said you were a goddess. Is it true?"

The woman looked thoughtful. "When I was nine I was sold into slavery," she began, "and when I was thirteen my master forced me to eat Devil Fruit. It gave me considerable abilities, enabling me to both heal and kill. When I was fifteen I slew him and escaped, ending up on an island a long, long way from here that was in its third year of famine. A kind young warrior found me on the beach and took me to his home, feeding me despite not having enough even for himself. I wanted to thank him for his kindness, so I used my abilities to revive his village's crops and grant health to the starving. Then I went looking for the source of the problem, as there was no reason for the crops and animals to be dying that I could perceive."

She paused. "It turned out to be the result of a landslide up in the mountains that had exposed poisonous rock to the weather, causing the poison to flow into the river and kill everything that tried to grow. I found a small colony of creatures that ate the poison, rendering it harmless, and encouraged them to grow and spread so that the water would no longer carry the poison. When I returned to the village a week later they hailed me as a goddess and begged me to visit others who were suffering. I could not refuse, so I spent a month healing the sick and bringing life back to the ground. By the time I had finished the entire island had become convinced I was a goddess and nothing could say convinced them otherwise."

"You healed their sick, restored their crops and ensured they would never starve again and yet you don't believe you are a goddess?" Laki repeated dryly. "Not to mention you talk to sea creatures."

"What of the warrior?" Wiper asked. The woman smiled.

"His name is Sako; he was very kind to me, yet he was also a very fierce and dangerous warrior; very good with an axe. He was the one who persuaded me to accept his people's gifts, as gift-giving is generally more for the benefit of the giver than the recipient. He was also the one who taught me that a true gift is priceless, as it comes from the heart." Again, that small, secret smile. "I am very happy my father did not kill him, for all I had to spend four days healing him after my father half-decapitated him for having the audacity to kiss me. Well, rather more than kiss me actually, but I wasn't going to tell the children that."

Wiper's jaw dropped slightly. Did she just..?

"I always felt that the bravest thing he ever did was spend a full day running away from my father without ever wavering in his convictions," the woman went on; "it went against everything he'd ever been taught as a warrior and made him a laughing stock for the better part of a month, but his conviction and refusal to back down from his beliefs earned my father's forbearance, if not exactly his approval. Considering my father is one of the most feared swordsman on the Blue Sea, what Sako achieved is truly heroic."

"Were you in love with him?" Laki asked.

"No; I loved what he did for me, what he taught me and he will always be dear to my heart, but I am a child of the Blue Sea and the man I give the rest of my life to will have to be as much of a wanderer as I am," the woman said, "though that island will always have a place in my heart."

There was a pause as the five warriors took in the story she had told them. It was both more terrible and more wonderful than the version Wiper had heard first, but the fundamental truth of it was the same.

"Well, thank-you," Genbo said after a pause, getting up and walking over to kiss her hands before ambling off.

"Yes, thank-you," Laki echoed, doing likewise.

There was a pause where the three remaining men exchanged glances, and Braham got up. "Thank-you. Even though I was a very difficult patient," he told her gruffly, hugging her close for a moment and kissing her cheek before leaving.

"Thank-you for keeping everyone alive," Kamakiri said sincerely before quickly pecking her on the lips and darting off.

Wiper sat still for a moment longer, watching the strange woman who was a goddess and had killed a god.

"Why did you kill Enel?"

The smile he got in return was a sharp bearing of teeth. "He really needed killing. Here," she reached into her dress and pulled out a sheathed blade. "Next time anyone of your people meets a Devil Fruit User who thinks they own the world just because they ate something nobody else did, use this. Just remember not to take it out until you're sure they're dead; removing the head is the best way to guarantee your enemy won't get back up again."

Wiper walked over and accepted the blade, sticking it through his waistband. "Thank-you. For everything," he said simply, then leant down and kissed her, trying to put all his gratitude, joy, confusion and hope into it. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him back until he pulled away, breathing heavily. "Thank-you," he said again before retreating, heart pounding.

* * *

Behind him, Fox raised a hand to tingling lips with a singularly giddy expression. "True appreciation… comes from the heart," she whispered. "Now… I _know_ I did the right thing."

* * *

And so it ends.


	24. Clarity

**Clarity**

Fox had healed Zoro enough times now and of sufficiently severe injuries to get a vague reading on his emotions on top of being constantly aware of his location and physical health. She therefore knew he had been eavesdropping on her chat with the Shandians and had left in a huff when Wiper kissed her. She could understand why –he didn't know much about her yet– but had no intention of letting him cool off before confronting him. In her experience, 'cooling off' was just another way of letting something fester. Better to have an epic shouting match and get it over with, like she did with her father.

Hunting the swordsman down however was tricky, as he had gained an awareness of her presence and was trying to avoid her. In the end she resorted to Haki, ambushed him when he went to get another drink and dragged him off to a moderately private ruin.

"I know you were there," she said bluntly as he glared blackly at her. "Just say it."

"What did you kiss him for?!" Zoro exploded. "You-"

Fox cut him off, her hand shooting out to muffle whatever he had intended to say next. "I'll explain and then you can decide what you want to do, okay?"

"Fine," Zoro muttered, slumping back against the wall and fingering his swords. "Whatever."

"First, I was trained as an assassin from the age of eleven. The man I was entrusted to was _supposed_ to teach me to dance, sing, serve at table and generally behave in a manner that was demure, proper and discreet. He did all of those things, but he also taught me to kill. The womanly arts require a person to become what their host demands of them, so I was already being taught to deceive, dissemble and conceal. I learnt to lie with my words, with my body and to hide the deception so deep even I was barely aware of it. I was also taught patience, to wait, to let cruelty and pain wash over me like oil over a stone: unheeded.

"That is what makes a true assassin: Deceit and Patience. Once you are a master of both physical skill and strength become superfluous." She paused. "I know this doesn't seem relevant so bear with me."

Zoro grunted.

"Being taught to lie so well that it was never even noticed destroyed my faith in other people. After all if I could do it, why not them as well? So I found it very hard to trust others with my true nature and my private struggles. Then I was forced to eat Devil Fruit and suddenly I could _feel_ other people. Not just their physical health, but their feelings as well. It was like…" Fox struggled for a metaphor, "like the weather. From inside a cabin you can see it through the window but it doesn't affect you unless it is very severe; that is how other people's emotions are normally, right?"

"Yes," Zoro admitted cautiously.

"Whereas I am standing on deck and I can feel the sun on my skin, the wind in my hair and when it rains it chills me. However unlike Nami I can't read the weather; I don't know what each gust and flurry means except in a very general way. Does that make sense?" Fox took the nod as agreement and continued, "So I learnt through experience that while people do lie –and about the oddest things sometimes– not everyone does. I made friends and grew attached to people, especially people I had healed as healing them made me more aware of them and enabled me to actually read them like Nami reads weather after a certain number of times."

"So you can read me?" Zoro asked.

"Barely, unless I'm touching you skin to skin," Fox admitted candidly, "and then you'd probably get a reading off me too, but my owner had me use my skills to patch up the slaves who fought in gladiatorial combat for his entertainment, so I healed a lot of potentially fatal wounds on a regular basis. If you keep getting almost killed and I keep fixing you, we will reach the point that we can communicate with each-other clearly without speaking out loud, no matter how far apart we are. I got that close to several of the fighters, which came with the disadvantage that I became aware of their injuries as they received them. It didn't hurt, exactly, but it wasn't pleasant."

"Go on."

"Well, my owner was the eldest son of one of the main scions of the World Nobility and his father was invited to join the Gorosei, the world rulers, when I was fifteen," Fox continued, now speaking very quietly, "and to celebrate my owner had his top gladiators fight to the death in the arena. I felt each one of them die; it was horrible. Like being torn into pieces and burned alive all at once. It drove me to shut down and take steps to eradicate those I perceived as having caused that pain."

"Hence your bounty," Zoro said quietly.

"Yes. I'm not sure how I got out of Mariejois afterwards, but I did manage and a friend of my mother's found me and sent me into hiding until the fuss died down. Well, specifically she dumped me on one of the first Islands in the New World and told me not to kill anybody," Fox snorted, "as if I had it in me then. I just wanted to die."

"Is this where the story from earlier comes in?"

"Yep; Sako found me. He was how I found out that while skin contact gives me an impression of people's superficial feelings, a kiss grants an instant of connection to their heart, past the white noise of the everyday. Nobody who kisses me can deceive me as in that instant I can see their true intentions and feelings. Even a little peck on the cheek gives me a brief insight; a proper, true kiss gives me so much more than that."

"Which is why you let all kinds of people kiss you." Zoro determined, frowning.

"Yes; I still have dreadful trust issues and kisses reassure me that circumstances have not changed since the last time I met someone. Of course they also feel nice and reassure other people that I care too, which helps as I'm so good at lying now I often don't notice how much of myself I am hiding away."

"You talk to me," Zoro pointed out.

"You're an exception; I've never told anyone about my bounty before or all of this stuff. Most people who know either worked it out for themselves or were there when I was working it out for myself." Fox paused. "I have no real idea why I trust you this much other than you just feel right to me on so many levels it is hard to remember that we don't actually know each-other very well. So bear with me, please?" Another nod. "This is related to why I'm so extremely tactile with some people but won't let others near me; some people are just too volatile for me to feel comfortable with and others set off my instincts in all the wrong ways. Take Chopper for instance. He's very naïve and doesn't know how to distinguish between something startling and genuine, life-threatening risk and being exposed to erratic bursts of a sense of impending peril would have me killing things that really don't need killing.

"Nami is very emotional and blows hot and cold all the time, like a little weather system all her own. Even sitting near her is wearing on the nerves because she projects like crazy. Usopp is terrified of practically everything and would have my nerves like taunt wires and the deck soaking in blood before breakfast. Robin… there's something broken in there. Not quite sure what yet but somebody did a number on her. Luffy barely thinks at all so he unnerves me as I can't see the changes coming; he's like that cyclone that came out of the blue when Nami was sick, acting at the very moment he sees something. Sanji… well he's better than the rest of them but the way he flutters grates on my nerves sometimes. I'll eat anything he puts in front of me, I trust him to watch my back in a fight and care for me when I'm sick but he sees me as a woman first and in a lot of ways I'm a killer even before that." Fox sighed. "You on the other hand just seem to get it. You know I'm a killer and you don't care, your day-to-day emotions are steady and disciplined and you are totally trustworthy. Plus, my father clearly thinks you have potential so I don't think he'll try to cut you out of my life like he's done to quite a few others I tried to get close to."

"Like Sako?"

Fox snorted. "Sako survived. The other eleven didn't."

Zoro paled visibly.

"Well, anyway I hope I've explained why I kissed Wiper. I'm sorry it upset you but I'm not sorry I did it," Fox concluded.

"I got that," Zoro said dryly, rising to his feet and walking over to her. "It's part of who you are. Well, this is how _I_ feel about it-" He pounced, one arm snaking around her waist as the other cradled the back of her head and pulled her face down to his.

_Jealousy. Protectiveness. Desire. Hunger. Passion. Longing. __**Resolve**__._

Fox surfaced, gasping for breath as her heart tried to pound its way out of her chest and she leant her forehead against Zoro's. "You don't do anything by halves, do you?" she managed to say.

He smirked darkly up at her. "Never."

* * *

Zoro gets his act together.


	25. Shadow

**Shadow**

Fox did not join in with the rest of the crew in 'stealing' gold from Nola's stomach or go with Robin to see the golden bell dragged out of the bay. Instead she had the children help her move all the various gifts she had been unable to avoid being given to her cabin on board the Going Merry and stow them properly so they wouldn't get broken. Some of these gifts were tokens, like clothing, others were useful, like the numerous Dials, while others were incredibly valuable, like the snake egg Nola had entrusted to her. Apparently Nola's species could reproduce through parthenogenesis and the beautiful serpent wanted Fox to raise her daughter. Of course it would be well over a century before the still unborn snake would ever be able to rival Nola's size, but that wasn't really a problem. The children were all awed by the egg in its little incubator and promised to keep its presence a secret until after the ship had left.

Equally special were the two dozen feather charms Laki had presented her with; among the Shandians it was traditional to give a feather ornament made from one of your own wing feathers as a token of thanks and in recognition of great service; they also symbolised debts that one family owed another. Every single one of the warriors who had entered the Upper Yard with Wiper and survived had made one for her in recognition of her aid. Each one was finely dyed and decorated with the individual warrior's colours and symbols; Fox intended to keep them very safe indeed. As these tokens were only exchanged between Shandian warriors it was a kind of adoption and recognition of her battle prowess; Fox was sure that if any Shandians ever ventured down to the Grand Line they would come looking for her.

Fox had given gifts as well; other than Wiper now having one of her Kairoseki knives Laki had an Eternal Pose for Mystoria in case anybody ever wanted to visit, alongside a chart, detailed written instructions on how to get there and a list of safe people to ask assistance from. Fox was certain that any meeting between Shandians and Mystorians would be interesting and potentially very embarrassing for her. The things she did for people…

The hardest part of leaving however had been not bursting into tears the moment she set foot on the Going Merry: the ship was dying. She was holding out as best she could but now it was simply a matter of delaying the inevitable. Fox didn't think she'd make it much further than the beginning of the sea train zone before falling apart.

Not being able to face looking her crew in the eye right now, Fox let her eager helpers each kiss her goodbye, gave each one a shell out of her trinket box in exchange for an equivalent childish treasure, waved them off and fell into bed, weeping bitterly into her pillow. The Merry tried to soothe her, whispering with acceptance and love, but it didn't help much; she was mourning. Soon the sweet, willing little vessel would be dead and Fox' soul would have another tear in it that would take time to heal.

* * *

Zoro was a little worried by the vague sense of misery that he was getting from Fox as they sailed across the White Sea towards Cloud's End. She had been in her cabin when they dashed on board and set sail as fast as they could and while the others thought she was asleep, the swordsman could tell otherwise. However he decided it was best not to mention it; he would check up on her once they were sailing on actual seawater again. The sudden arrival of the irritated South Bird which had guided them to the knock-up stream however prompted him to visit her sooner; the bird was insistent on entering Fox' cabin and nobody else was willing to risk it outside of a definite emergency.

Opening the door so the bird could perch on the capstan, Zoro took a moment to check everything was firmly tied down –it was– then closed the cabin door behind him, knelt by her futon and placed his hand on her tear-stained cheek.

"What's wrong?"

Fox sobbed, her whole body shuddering. "Merry is dying," she choked out. "I'm doing what I can but she just isn't going to make it much further."

The swordsman's eyes widened and he bowed his head, unable to think of anything he could say that would improve the situation. The ship had seen them through many difficult situations and been damaged numerous times, but he'd never actually thought it might not be able to cope.

"She wasn't built for the Grand Line," Fox whispered, leaning into his hand as he ran his fingers soothingly through her hair, "and she doesn't have the strength to go much further." She sniffed. "Don't tell; she doesn't want them to know yet. Just make sure we find a shipwright sooner rather than later."

Zoro nodded, leant down to kiss her cheek but lost his balance as the whole ship lurched and dropped straight down. He was suspended in midair for a moment then dumped on top of her as the fall slowed abruptly. Fox grabbed his shirt as he tried to get up again.

"Don't go?"

The swordsman huffed, but kicked off his boots and sprawled across the bed beside her while on deck Usopp and Luffy shouted about the Octopus-balloon that was giving them a ride downwards. Fox snuggled into him, leaning her back against his chest while keeping her face buried in the pillow. Zoro rested his face against the curve of her neck and closed his eyes, arms wrapped tightly around Fox' middle. Sleep came instantly, but the golden bell of Shandora rang in his dreams.

* * *

Zoro was rudely awoken by the sudden impact of hitting the sea. Fox had actually fallen asleep, but her face was pale and tearstained and her pillow slightly soggy so the swordsman gently extricated himself, pulled on his boots, kissed her and went out to see if his help was needed on deck.

A good thing he had too, as they had fallen in the path of a group of Sea Monkeys driving a wave and had to do some very quick sailing.

When they'd shaken the wave-making creatures off their tail Luffy tried to use the Waver, but failed as miserably as he had on the White-White Sea. Nami was again successful, and was coasting around the Merry when she shrieked in terror, bringing everyone to the edge of the deck.

Nami and the Waver were now stranded on the nose of a very familiar Sea King, which seemed to be trying to tip its head to look at her properly without spilling her off its nose. Zoro muffled a chuckle behind his hand; Nami hadn't recognised Swift Hunter and was panicking.

"Zoro! Sanji! Luffy! Help!" she squeaked.

The swordsman grabbed the chef before he could leap to her rescue. "Don't; Fox will be cross with you," he advised flatly.

"Why would- oh." Sanji relaxed. "It's Swift Hunter."

The Sea King swam over to the ship, tipped Nami and the Waver on board then twisted its head on one side to get a better look at both. Luffy patted the massive muzzle fearlessly. "Hi again!" he said brightly. "I think Fox is asleep, but I know she missed you!"

Swift Hunter made a deep, melodic sound that was vaguely reminiscent of Laboon and vanished beneath the surface.

"What?" Nami looked utterly bewildered.

"It's Fox's magic ship!" Luffy replied with a grin. Nami looked caught between anger and embarrassment, but soon recovered and decided it was time to divide the loot. Zoro took the opportunity to suggest they spend some of the gold getting the Merry to a shipwright, though he phrased it as 'repairing the ship'.

"Repair the ship?" Luffy repeated. "Going Merry?"

"Yes, the ship is barely holding together right now," Nami agreed with a frown.

"That's true," Usopp conceded. In the following flurry of chatter Sanji suggested they visit a professional shipwright and Zoro considered his duty done. Luffy then declared that they would have to pick up someone to help them repair the ship properly as soon as possible.

"We can't rely on Usopp all the time and Fox says healing ships gets risky after a while," he went on, "as they can't get more energy from eating like people do and fall apart!"

"Is that why her ship can turn into a Sea King?" Chopper wondered.

"I think so!" Luffy agreed. So did Zoro, but he also thought it was the sheer speed, manoeuvrability and ability to escape the random surface weather on the Grand Line that had prompted her to make a ship that could turn into a sea monster, not to mention the camouflage it offered.


	26. Games

**Games**

When their ship was trapped near the shore of the island with ridiculously tall trees and everyone on board was made to get off Zoro was expecting Fox to be angry at being woken. However as soon as she emerged from the cabin his instincts flared and blood began to race: Wearing a billowy, off-the-shoulder kimono with her hair piled up on the back of her head and sunglasses hiding her eyes, Fox looked like a decorative bit of arm candy; a blatant lie. She was gearing up for a fight, but a battle that was between minds rather than fists. The hip-swinging walk, the paper umbrella balanced on one shoulder –which was a shikomi-zue he just knew it– the casually demanding way she held out her hand so the dumbass cook could lift her out of the ship, all an act to lure this new enemy into a false sense of security. She was instantly the centre of attention, every last man staring in wonder or outright lust.

"What's your game?" Zoro muttered as she sauntered over to stand a little behind him and fiddle with the collar of her garment.

"Depends on the captain," she murmured back, lips not moving. "Several different ways this could go." She stayed where she was, posing in an absent sort of way as the crew of the ship that had stopped them told them about the game of Davy Back and its associated risks.

"You knew?" He finally muttered, realising what was up with her outfit: she looked like pirate bait. Beautiful, slightly wilful and very expensive made for an irresistible combination.

"Swift Hunter won't like me getting on another ship," she replied quietly, "not without an explanation. I get left behind, she comes looking… no more problem."

It was a distinctly piratical plan and didn't break any of the rules, but Luffy wouldn't leave anybody behind if he could help it, no matter how temporary said 'leaving behind' might prove. Zoro grimaced; this was going to get messy.

"What are you dressed as, Fox-chan?" Sanji asked, sidling up. Fox winked seductively at him:

"Ship's nurse."

The ero-cook melted into burbling mush; Zoro snorted. The funny bit was she actually _was_ the ship's nurse.

* * *

In deciding the game lineup, Fox insisted in joining the second round in Chopper's place to, in her own words, "keep the boys in line." Since Sanji and Zoro had only ever been seen working together for her sake, Robin agreed it was a good idea. As only seven people could participate in the games that meant Chopper couldn't join in, as it was a bad idea for a Devil Fruit User to take part in the boat race and Luffy had claimed the fighting round for himself. Chopper wasn't happy about not being able to participate but agreed that it was probably for the best.

Unfortunately, due to captain Foxy's Devil Fruit Power they lost the boat race despite Swift Hunter's unseen assistance in keeping them moving and the tricky captain picked out Chopper as his prize. Then came the Groggy Ring game.

"Sanji, you be the ball," Fox said firmly before the two men could start arguing. "I've had more practice working with Zoro and this way I won't get manhandled by the other team."

"As you wish, Fox-chan!" Sanji cooed, fastening the beach ball onto his head with the straps provided and hurrying over to the other side of the pitch.

"Hey! You!" The referee shouted at the swordsman. "It's against the rules to use weapons! Put them away!"

"Eh? Really?" Zoro did not give them to the referee but handed them to Fox, who shoved them through her obi before pouting soulfully at the unfortunate man selected to keep order.

"It's not like I'm a swordsman, referee-san," she demurred, umbrella rolling across the bare skin on the top of her right shoulder and nudging her neckline into showing a little more cleavage. The Foxy pirate folded like a house of cards; Robin smiled.

The Groggy Ring Battle was brutal; Robin knew there had to be a blade in the handle of Fox' umbrella due to the brutal, gaping wounds Pickles and Big Pan had acquired, but she never actually _saw_ it: the white-haired woman was too fast. The referee turning his back for half of the game actually proved a disadvantage for the home team as whenever it happened Zoro snatched his swords from Fox' obi and lit into the other team like a demon. After Hamburg was launched from the ring with potentially fatal wounds the referee actually tried to catch the Straw-Hat team cheating, but Zoro's swords were never in his hands when the referee was looking at him, generally having just been snatched from his grasp by Fox and either resheathed or –on more than one occasion– hidden in her skirts or behind her back. Beside the archaeologist Luffy cheered and laughed like crazy as his swordsman, chef and master of disguise –who was currently claiming to be the ship's nurse– utterly thrashed the opposing team.

The rest of the Foxy pirates loved it too, cheering like crazy for Fox in particular and her stylish yet very dirty stunts, particularly when she distracted Pickles at a fatal moment by clutching at her obi and shrieking that it had come undone. It hadn't; that didn't stop the pirate's head from swivelling towards her as if magnetically drawn before the large man was floored by Sanji for his 'un-gentlemanly behaviour'.

After their win Fox rewarded the chef with a peck on the lips which sent him twirling and swooning, then let Zoro pull her down and give her a steamy kiss in front of the whistling, hooting audience. The cheers for _that_ were even more deafening than the ones during the game.

Luffy reclaimed Chopper before proceeding to the final round: the one-on-one match.

* * *

After Luffy had won his duel against captain Foxy and taken their flag as a prize, the Straw-Hat crew returned to the yurt belonging to the old man and his very tall horse. The sudden appearance of the very tall man wearing a white suit and a sleep mask was a surprise, but the reactions of two of the women was more so: Robin froze in absolute terror, but Fox thrust her umbrella at Usopp, rapidly adjusted her kimono from 'shamelessly sexy' to 'polite and proper', snatched the umbrella back and settled herself just as the man removed the mask.

"You sure have grown to a fine young woman, Nico Robin," the tall stranger said. The entire crew was on high alert due to the abject horror on Robin's face but before the situation could escalate Fox kicked Usopp in the shin with superb accuracy and whacked Zoro on the back of the head with her umbrella. Having successfully made herself the centre of attention, Fox bowed with a fluidity and precision that nearly made Sanji weep at such aesthetic perfection.

"Admiral Aokiji, what a surprise to see you," she said politely, her tone demure and respectful. "I trust you are well?"

The admiral blinked. "Dracule Lisska? What a surprise to see you here, and in such company as well."

Sanji's brain stalled for a moment. _Dracule_ Lisska? As in the Shichibukai, Dracule Mihawk, the swordsman who all but cut the marimo in half? The hell?!

Fox smiled sharply. "Should the marines take offence to the company I keep I would no longer be able to sell to them, admiral, which would be terribly unfortunate."

The admiral nodded agreeably. "Indeed. You've grown very well over the years; no wonder your father is so hard to find, he must be kept busy killing off those trying to court you."

"We have come to an agreement on that matter," Fox said coolly, "and it is not the concern of those with whom we do not share blood."

"My apologies." The admiral bowed. "It was merely an idle observation. Your mother is well?"

"So she says," Fox responded, prolonging the decidedly demented polite conversation as around her the rest of the crew relaxed and backed off a little, "but you know how she is. I trust you have been enjoying the tea?"

"I have indeed; it is very good. Where did you find such a blend?" Sanji was now feeling extremely creeped out by this whole experience. Fox was chatting up an admiral! Nami however had seized the moment and was dragging Robin away from the man who frightened her so with a little help from Usopp.

Fox smiled, dipping her chin coyly. "Ah, but if I told you I would lose exclusivity!"

"Arara, so you would," the admiral acknowledged. "Why are you travelling with these pirates and Nico Robin, Dracule-chan?"

The mere _idea_ of Fox being addressed as 'Dracule-chan' was doing terrible things to Sanji's brain and Luffy seemed similarly baffled. The marimo didn't seem surprised at all; had the shitty swordsman been keeping secrets?

Fox' gaze dropped. "Well, they rescued me after an unfortunate run-in with the Krieg pirates," she explained, "which created a debt. I have been doing my best to assist them in non-offensive capacities since then, though I was forced to take up arms against Crocodile's forces in Alabasta." She sighed prettily. "They are by far a better class of pirate than most who sail the Grand Line; would you have preferred me to take up with Eustass Kid?"

The admiral actually twitched; Sanji was impressed, though he had no idea who this Kid-guy was.

"Besides," Fox continued, now peeking up at the admiral from under her lashes, "after hearing so much about him from Vice-Admiral Garp I simply had to meet him for myself."

Admiral Aokiji bowed to her. "Touché, Dracule-chan. Please do not get yourself into trouble on these' ruffians behalf; it would be most unfortunate for all concerned." He turned to address the old man, who had been watching the conversation in bemusement. "You. I wasn't in a deep sleep so I heard what you said. Pack up and get ready to move."

* * *

A shikomi-zue is a sword hidden in a cane, such as a walking stick or an umbrella. Oh, and Fox' name gets out.


	27. Redress

**Redress**

As the Straw-Hats and Admiral Aokiji watched the old man walk away across the ice said admiral had created using his Devil Fruit Fox had genuinely hoped everything would work out, but as soon as the nomad and his tall horse were out of sight everything went to hell without even a handbasket. First, Aokiji –who Fox' mother Pearl called 'Kuzan-san' whenever he visited her teahouse in Sabaody– suggested the Straw-Hats all die right now, explaining that while the government had dismissed them as a threat, he was of the opinion that they would become one very soon. The admiral then singled out Nico Robin and psychologically destroyed her in a few short sentences; Fox knew exactly who to blame now for the mental damage the archaeologist had suffered.

Fox was feeling horribly conflicted about this; she'd been living a triple-life since escaping slavery at fifteen, but after meeting Luffy and the rest of the Straw-Hats her ordered existence had begun falling apart. Dracule Lisska was a maker of charts and Eternal Poses, some of which she sold to the marines at slightly below the market rate, Fox was a nomad with pirate friends and an in to the largest intelligence network on the planet and the Phantom was an assassin who never left a single witness behind. But now, mere weeks after meeting Luffy, her selves had gotten all tangled up in each-other and she was revealing more and more of her true self –an amalgam of the three– to people she barely knew yet trusted completely. Her captain truly was a D.

Robin then snapped and tried to kill Aokiji; knowing the attempt was doomed to failure, Fox darted to stand between the admiral and his goal as he reformed from the shattered ice. Zoro also leapt in, parrying the admiral's ice sabre as Fox backed up, pushing Robin behind her.

"Why are you-"

"Shh!" Fox hissed, gripping her umbrella tightly. "You're crew. I'm crew. That's it. Oh God help me, Luffy's in my head!" she added with a whimper. "My father is going to be so cross with me!"

Sanji had joined in fighting Aokiji but the admiral partly froze both chef and swordsman as Luffy charged in and punched the tall marine, freezing his own fist. All three screamed. The admiral then approached Fox and Robin.

"Please step aside, Dracule Lisska," he said, air condensing around his body. "I have nothing against you."

"What kind of person would I be, Kusan-san, were I to simply step aside and allow a person relying on me to come to harm?" Fox asked, looking him frankly in the eye as her hands flickered with ominously jagged white light.

The admiral smiled. "I see. Admirable." He tried to reach past her, but Fox parried his arm with the umbrella, quickly drawing the sword from its handle and dropping the rest as it froze solid.

"You owe me a new umbrella," she frowned, "that was from San Faldo."

Aokiji smiled. "I will endeavour to have one sent to you. Now please, step aside."

Robin suddenly darted out from behind Fox, running for the ship. The admiral was quicker though and froze her solid. However just was he was about to punch her body and shatter her into a million icy shards Fox snatched up the ice statue and ran for her life towards the sea. Behind her she could hear Luffy shouting something about fighting him alone, but ignored it. Robin was still alive right now so thawing her was what she needed to do.

"Chopper! Run a bath so we can defrost her!" she shouted at the reindeer, who had followed her mad dash with Usopp.

"Roger!" Chopper shouted, changing into his 'Walk' form and dashing ahead.

* * *

Leaning over the bath full of lukewarm water, Fox placed one hand on Robin's forehead and the other on her heart and closed her eyes, skin glowing softly white. At first there was no change in the frozen woman, then she slowly started to steam and the ice to melt.

"I'm lifting her body's natural thermostat," Fox said to the listening Chopper. "Normally a temperature this high would kill her, but right now it is helping her defrost without developing exposure. She'll need lots of hot, nutritious broth once she's out of danger as this uses a lot of the body's resources but it is better than freezing to death."

The reindeer dashed out on deck as the others retuned minus their captain. Fox knew Luffy would lose against the admiral; all she could do was hope Aokiji didn't kill him. She ignored the fight that started between Usopp, Sanji and Zoro after the latter two managed to defrost their injuries by jumping in the sea, concentrating on reviving Robin slowly enough not to harm her but not so slowly she died.

"I warn you, Kuzan-san," she whispered though he certainly could not hear her, "kill my captain and I will be very upset with you. Honestly, there might be tears."

Just as she had got Robin to the point that her autonomic nervous system was running again –meaning she had a heartbeat and was breathing– when Sanji and Zoro dashed in, carrying a Luffycicle. She quickly placed her hand on her captain's chest.

"Not dead," she announced. "Sanji, carry Robin to the ladies' cabin, get Nami to dry her off and change her clothing, bury her under a mountain of blankets and get as much of the most nutritious soup you can make down her throat as possible." The chef obeyed instantly. "Zoro, help me get Luffy into the tub; careful now, he's fragile."

With her captain now in Robin's place, Fox set about defrosting the person in front of her all over again.

* * *

Three days later, Fox and Chopper's two patients were recovered enough for the crew's focus to have shifted from their health to the things Aokiji had revealed about their white-haired crewmate.

"So, Dracule-_chan?_" Usopp asked, flipping his catapult in a way that was probably meant to be menacing.

"Captain?" Fox inquired, eyes closed and not moving from where she was held firmly in Zoro's arms as the swordsman sat with his back against the mast.

"I don't really care about your name," Luffy admitted frankly, "but there are two things I do want to know."

"Which are?"

"Who's Eustass Kid? And when did you meet my Grandpa?" Luffy asked.

Fox opened her eyes a crack. "Eustass Kid is a new pirate going after One Piece like you are, except he has a bad habit of slaughtering civilians. And I see your Grandpa whenever he and I happen to be in my mother's teahouse at the same time."

"Your mother owns a teahouse?" Usopp asked.

"Yes, on Sabaody. I'm hoping we'll get a chance to visit as she wants to meet you all."

"Wait," Nami asked, "how does she even know about us?"

"I wrote to her," Fox said simply. "I write to a lot of people. Oh and Luffy, Ace says 'Hi' and sends his congratulations on the new bounty."

"Tell him thank-you!" Luffy grinned happily.


	28. Transience

**Transience**

Fox spent most of the time it took them to reach Water Seven either sleeping, sitting in the kitchen with Sanji or on Swift Hunter. Zoro monopolised her time whenever she wasn't chatting to Sanji, so the rest of the crew didn't get much of a chance to talk to her about what Admiral Aokiji had revealed.

Chopper and Usopp weren't really bothered, just confused, as neither really knew what was so important about her surname anyway. The sniper knew it meant _something_ but couldn't place it and the reindeer was totally ignorant. Nami was worried, but not overly so: though she guessed Fox was closely related to Dracule Mihawk it didn't bother her in more than an abstract manner as she had not actually seen the man in action, nor realised he was one of the Shichibukai.

Luffy simply didn't care. Fox wasn't her father any more than Ace was his, so that Hawk-eyes was Fox' dad just wasn't relevant to him.

Robin was conflicted. The archaeologist knew in her bones that Fox was the most powerful, most experienced and most dangerous member of the crew and that she was the daughter of the only Shichibukai to have attained the position through just his own strength and skill only made her more dangerous. Tangled up in that fear was genuine attachment born of Fox' acceptance and kindness as well as gratitude for her attempt to defend Robin from the admiral. That Fox was familiar with said admiral did not help Robin determine whether she wanted to stay as far away from the white-haired woman as possible or linger more closely. Fox was an enigma edged in blades and protected by a labyrinth of mirrors.

Sanji was the only member of the crew other than Zoro to have twigged that Fox was a goldmine of useful information and had immediately laid claim to a portion of her time to ask questions, engage in debates and generally get to know her better. He knew she was completely crazy about the shitty swordsman –and he about her, amazingly– so toned the flirting down as much as he could, which was really hard considering her sincere and highly sensual appreciation of his food. As a compromise he invited her to talk to him while he was cooking, as that meant he could listen while working rather than placing her at the centre of his attention.

He had learnt a lot in the past three days, about Fox, the Grand Line in general, various foods she had eaten and people who had cooked for her, rare ingredients and delicacies she could get hold of –some of which she had fetched from Swift Hunter for him to try for himself– and why she was on friendly terms with an admiral. The chef knew Zoro had been listening in on a lot of those conversations from where he was ostensibly lifting weights on the deck, but didn't care so long as the seaweed-head's paranoia didn't upset Fox.

What concerned Sanji was how dozy Fox had been since Long Ring Long Land: she was sleeping almost eighteen hours a day, mostly leaning against or wrapped around Zoro, which really wasn't normal or healthy. He could tell the swordsman was concerned as well, but the marimo seemed to know what the problem was as he didn't seem worried per se, just resigned. All Zoro would say on the subject was "We need that shipwright," leading Sanji to believe it was something to do with the Merry.

* * *

Fox had been mostly awake the day the island was sighted, her head leaning on Zoro's shoulder as her arms around his waist to keep herself upright. Her swordsman had been very worried about how much energy she was expending keeping them afloat and refused to wander very far from her, even at night. He had taken to sleeping in her cabin and would have curled up on the floor had she not told him that the futon was big enough for two. He also touched her more often rather than simply letting her touch him, possibly to gauge her wellbeing through their now extended awareness of each-other. Fox knew that fatigue was something that shone through rather easily if you knew what you were looking for and the way Zoro would catch her wrist or place a hand on the back of her neck suggested he was keeping a very close eye on her health. He also got more aggressive at the dinner table, serving her more food and fighting off Luffy's attempts to take it for himself.

Fox had also taken him to see the inside of Swift Hunter and shown him her Log Pose workshop. The swordsman had admired her work, however he had been more interested in the Dojo that took up half the lower level of her ship and the weapons displayed on the walls, especially when she admitted to being able to use most of them. He had managed to tease a promise out of her for some spars in the future so he could see what it was like to fight different kinds of weapons users.

As the nature of Water Seven became more distinct and they sailed around the island in search of a place to anchor, Fox let Zoro all but carry her back to her cabin so she could get changed.

"You need to keep a bit more energy to yourself," he scolded her gruffly as she swayed on her feet; "We're practically there now. Stop being so difficult about it."

Fox reluctantly thinned her connection to the Merry as much as she dared before rummaging through the mish-mash of garments Zoro had brought up from Swift Hunter while she was asleep. It was an eclectic collection: plain, dark-coloured trousers in canvas and leather that allowed plenty of movement without being visibly loose, numerous floral and patterned tops from long-sleeved shirts to little vest tops, numerous scarves and large kerchiefs to cover hair or wrap around her neck, a few pairs of sunglasses, three different jackets in a variety of lengths and styles, two pairs of boots, a dozen belts and:

"A cowboy hat?" Fox lifted it out of the bag and gently smoothed out the creases. "I don't even _own_ a cowboy hat." It was black felt with a string of turquoise discs marking the band and looked well-worn. However it was the twin dips in the front of the brim that jogged Fox' memory:

"This is Ace' spare hat."

"Then why was it on the top of your mirror?" Zoro asked, coming up behind her.

"Because Ace is a messy person and only keeps track of his possessions on dry land," Fox said wryly. "I know I have some more clothes that are technically his in my wardrobe, including a few shirts. In fact I may have all the shirts he actually owns; he certainly never _wears_ them anymore."

"Why in _your_ room?" Zoro grumbled.

"Swift Hunter only _has_ one bedroom, Zoro," Fox reminded him. "It's not like the bed isn't big enough for four." The bed was in fact big enough for twelve, provided those twelve didn't mind squashing up a bit and six of them put their heads at the foot of the bed.

Zoro subsided, turning his back once more as she changed into a comfortable pair of brown leather trousers and a floral tank top in shades of orange, picking out a battered green pea coat to go over the top and a pair of sturdy ankle boots to go with them. Next she quickly braided her hair into three tails, pinned them closely to her skull and tied a bright floral bandanna over the top, concealing her hair completely. Then she put on a pair of blue-tinted, rectangular, rimless spectacles and added Ace' spare hat to her ensemble, tying another bandanna loosely around her neck to disguise the line of her jaw.

"How's that look?"

Zoro tipped his head on one side. "Not immediately recognisable," he conceded. Fox grinned, added a belt with appropriate accessories and knives to the sheathes integral to the coat she had chosen then pushed everything else back into the kitbag.

"There; done," she declared, grabbing her messenger bag and looping it over her head. "Are we there yet?" she added, sensing a change in the ship's motion.

Zoro dragged her out of the cabin just in time to see that they had reached a deserted peninsula and were preparing to pull up the sail. The swordsman immediately pitched in, only for the mast to break as he tugged on a rope.

"I didn't think the Merry was in quite _that_ bad shape," he admitted aloud as Usopp berated him for damaging the ship. It was a very short scold however as Sanji mentioned they should be alright here so long as they were customers –ie paid for things– and the sniper tried to dash off with Luffy to see the sights. Nami caught them however and had them escort her to the Iceberg guy the old lady at the floating train station had given them a letter for.

"What about you, Fox-chan?" Sanji asked.

"I actually have business contacts here," Fox admitted, "so I'm going to go and persuade tight-fisted merchants to part with their money. Want to come, Zoro?"

"I'd rather nap," the swordsman admitted.

"Fair enough," Fox said easily. "Sanji? I'll be taking Swift Hunter around as I've quite a lot of valuables to trade on board, including those spices from Skypeia which should fetch a pretty penny. You could trade in the recipes you got from Conis' father, if you wanted. You could even charge a commission for them."

The chef looked interested. "Sounds like fun; I'll come and do some shopping, too. I'll do the heavy lifting for you as well, so you don't strain yourself!"

"If you want," Fox shrugged, dropping off the deck onto Swift Hunter's head. "Come on then."

"You aren't going inside," Zoro noticed.

"Why bother? It isn't far," Fox shrugged, crossing her legs on her perch on the top of the Sea King's nose. "See you when we get back!"


	29. Fury

**Fury**

When Fox and Sanji returned from her errands, having picked up Chopper along the way, Zoro immediately confronted them with the opinion of the shipwright that had dropped by. Fox' first feeling on hearing that the Going Merry was finished as a ship was overwhelming relief; she didn't have to hide anymore.

"Fox, did you know this already?" Sanji asked, spotting the look on her face. She really was much more open than she used to be.

"I'm a healer, not a shipwright," Fox said shortly. "I didn't know whether or not she could be fixed, but I knew something serious was wrong."

"So that's why you've been looking like a ghost lately!" Chopper accused her. "You've been feeding her energy!"

"And now that I know I'm only prolonging the inevitable I can stop," Fox said firmly, heading for the main room with some of Sanji's shopping bags. Setting them down by the kitchen units, Fox climbed onto the table, crossed her legs and closed her eyes. Disconnecting herself from a dying patient was something she'd taught herself through sheer necessity. It never worked completely, but it was better than feeling their death rattle, metaphorical or otherwise, in her chest as said patient's body ceased to function. It was a slow, tedious and painful business to break away but much of life was like that.

Part-way through the process a familiar calloused hand brushed her cheek, briefly opening a new dimension of emotion and connection before fading again. Fox continued her self-appointed task; Zoro was going out and had been worried about her. He would be back soon and there wasn't anyone on the island likely to give him trouble. Fox filed away the instinctive uneasiness that had surfaced with that 'no-one likely'; she could locate the people setting her warning bells jangling later. She had to take care of herself first.

It was early evening when they returned with a heavily-injured Usopp and Fox was feeling much more like herself. She hadn't realised quite how heavily the Merry was sapping her and the change was invigorating. To celebrate, she was walking on her hands along the railing on the main deck, her cowboy hat's strap snugly fastened under her chin. When Usopp woke up she joined the rest of the crew –minus Robin– in the main cabin, leaning against Zoro's side and fiddling with her sunglasses. The sniper was apologising profusely for having lost the money to fix Merry with until Luffy cut him off, declaring that he had decided they were going to change ships. Fox felt the air change and suddenly _knew_ this was going to end badly.

"Hold on, hold on," Usopp protested, "that's not funny at all! Do we not have enough money to repair the ship anymore because I lost the 200 million? We just don't have enough money, right?"

"No, that's not it!" Luffy corrected him, but Usopp was just raising his voice and demanding to know why they were talking about needing a new ship. Zoro tried to get them to calm down but neither captain nor sniper seemed inclined to. His attempts to play peacemaker may have been prompted by Fox' sudden death grip on his arm and very careful breathing; she was trying not to react the wrong way to the situation she could feel coming to the boil. Part of her wanted to kill Usopp for questioning her captain's decisions so rudely, part of her wanted to run away from the immanent emotional pain her Colour of Observation was warning her about and the rest of her was all for throwing a bucket of water over them to get them to stop yelling.

"Merry is going to die!" Luffy shouted. Fox cringed; too late to run.

She tried to let the argument wash over her, but there was too much pain in the air, too closely entwined with people she had healed multiple times who were all in close quarters with her. All she could do was hope she could keep herself together until they ran out of things to say. She managed, just, until Usopp accused Luffy of poor judgement, bluffing and not caring about the ship.

* * *

Sudden, terrible silence descended on the cabin as Usopp was abruptly cut off, wheezing as though he had forgotten how to breathe.

"You are a fool," Fox' words cut through the oppressive, choking calm like an executioner's axe. "You think that you can patch up this ship and make her sail again? You are far, far crueller than I had believed possible, Usopp."

"C-cruel?" the sniper managed to cough up.

"Would you force a horse with a broken back to carry you?" Fox demanded harshly. "Because that is what you are asking of Merry. She is dying, has been since being taken to Upper Yard. I have been doing all I could for her but even that was simply prolonging the agony. Have you ever nursed a dying man, Usopp?" The white-haired woman truly looked her father's daughter to Sanji, back straight and scowling blackly from shadowed eyes as the air around her seemed to chill and condense.

"N-n-no," Usopp stuttered.

"Then be silent. There comes a point when, as a doctor, healer or shipwright all you are doing is prolonging the inevitable and causing your patient unnecessary pain. When that time comes a person has to make a choice: will you allow your own desperation to control you and continue the torture, for it _is_ torture at that point; will you allow your patient to slip away in their own time; or will you offer to end their pain as quickly and painlessly as you are able." Fox took a harsh breath. "This is the real world. It is not nice and we do not all get happy endings. However we must be able to live with ourselves afterwards."

"Not everyone can be as ruthlessly cold-blooded as you!" Usopp shouted, eyes screwed up.

"I know," Fox said evenly, but there was an edge to her voice that had Zoro moving forwards and Sanji carefully pulling Nami backwards. "That's why I follow Luffy: he has heart."

"He wants to leave Merry too! I won't abandon a wounded comrade just because he says so!" Usopp blundered on, heedless of the danger he was getting himself into. Sanji desperately hoped this didn't end with a corpse on the cabin floor as he inched forwards to grab Chopper and drag the terrified reindeer out of the line of fire.

"Going Merry is alive! You're just too careless about leaving her! I won't allow– urk!" Fox had lunged almost too quickly to follow, but Zoro had partly blocked the strike that would have taken off the sniper's head. Instead the knife had cut a deep graze above his jugular vein and windpipe before his legs were kicked from under him by the swordsman as Zoro parried another fast-moving knife, that one thrown at Usopp's eye. Fox danced backwards and Zoro followed, engaging her in a brutal, dirty, high-speed close-quarters fight that barely lasted four seconds before the marimo dropped a sword in order to grab her hand. The drip of blood from where the knife had gone right through his palm to the hilt as his fingers closed on hers was loud in the abrupt stillness, then Fox mechanically shook blood of her other blade, sheathed it and let go of the one stuck through Zoro's hand. Turning, she prostrated herself in front of Luffy.

"My apologies, captain; I had no right."

Luffy crawled out from under the destroyed table and gently patted her hair. "It's okay," he told her firmly; "I know how hard you've worked on Merry, keeping her together. You are allowed to lose your temper when people upset you. I forgive you."

Fox rose stiffly to her feet, turned and all but ran from the room; Zoro picked up his sword in his uninjured hand and hurried after her as Chopper dashed over to Usopp to tend to his newest injury. Nami was trembling uncontrollably behind the chef and Luffy looked very stern indeed:

"Usopp, if you don't like my decision you can just leave!" he said tightly, only his clenched fists giving away how very angry he was. "You have no right to say that kind of thing to Fox! She's worked harder on Merry than any of us!"

"Luffy! Be careful what you say!" Sanji admonished him. "Calm down! There's been enough bloodshed for one day."

"No. That's fine Luffy!" Usopp croaked, pushing Chopper aside. "Since that's what you really feel!"

"What did you say!?" Luffy demanded sharply.

Sanji watched as Usopp dug his own grave even deeper and unconsciously revealed his deep-seated insecurity before finishing with, "I quit." The chef then turned and went looking for the crew's swordsman and assassin, as he now was forced to recognise Fox as being; she had left enough hints and clues for him to put the picture together for himself.

He found both of them in the forward cannon deck, Zoro's hand as good as new and Fox kneeling in his lap with her face buried in the side of his neck, trembling as the swordsman's hands gently ran up and down her spine and around her throat. The chef looked the other man in the eye and inclined his head inquiringly. The swordsman looked back calmly, expression firm but serene. Sanji left.

"Are they okay?" Luffy asked anxiously after the chef closed the door behind him.

"Zoro's fine; Fox is still recovering," Sanji said quietly. "She really respects you, you know?"

Luffy bowed his head. "She's been around really powerful pirate crews," the rubberman whispered, "whose loyalty to and respect for their captains is absolute; captains that would have killed Usopp for disrespect if he said that to them. I _am_ the captain and it _is_ my ship, so _I_ have to make the decisions. That is what Fox' presence reminds me of, every day. I owe it to her to be the best captain I can be."

Sanji understood; Fox was an example of the level they had to reach in order to even hope to get to the end of the Grand Line. As it stood she was way ahead of them in every way; what she had said about nursing the dying was just one example, as was her fighting skill. Sanji had seen that the draw of that knife had been awkward but Zoro had barely parried it before it went all the way through the sniper's neck, she had been so fast. The swordsman was also stronger than her, if rather shorter, but he had been losing before he changed his strategy and grabbed her hand. The Shichibukai's daughter was several cuts above the rest of the crew, though she rarely ever showed it.

Then Usopp challenged Luffy to a duel for the Going Merry and Sanji lit a new cigarette; he knew the whole situation could only go further downhill from here.

* * *

Things fall apart.


	30. Volatile

**Volatile**

After calming down enough to be told about the upcoming duel, Fox calmly cleared her room out down to the boards, getting Sanji to help her stow everything except clothes and a selection of weaponry back on Swift Hunter.

"Win or lose, we can't stay here," she told Nami when the navigator asked what she was doing, "the ship's on borrowed time. Is there anything you'd like me to hide in Hunter?"

Nami decided to entrust their remaining gold to Fox' ship, probably because it could guard itself and was very hard to steal from. Sanji helped both women stow it away, then watched Zoro kiss Fox goodbye as she headed into the city with her bag over one shoulder to hunt down Robin.

"I'll find you at eleven," Fox had promised Luffy, "and in the meantime I'll try and find where Robin's gone. I know she's still in town so it shouldn't be too hard." She'd paused then, hesitant. Luffy had hugged her.

"Good," he'd said earnestly. "You're both my nakama and I won't let you go." Fox had smiled before turning to the swordsman, who had made it clear that despite it being for only a few hours he was going to miss her. Sanji had been torn between gushing over the romance and sniping at the marimo, so stayed silent.

The remaining five Straw-Hats had then waited silently for ten o'clock to come around, Swift Hunter lurking somewhere nearby just in case.

* * *

Fox was did not spend very long looking for Nico Robin; most of her evening was spent shadowing the four very strong individuals she was associating with and going over in her mind what she knew about Cipher Pol's infamous –in certain circles– so-called assassination squad. Fox didn't think them worthy of that title; while they were clearly superior intelligence agents with good undercover skills, they lacked the assassin mindset. Arrogance was an unattractive trait, but in an assassin it was often a fatal one; in her mind they barely ranked above hitmen. Government hitmen, Fox decided finally, with good physical skills but no understanding of the psychology of death. No understanding of Haki either, which was a gaping hole in their defences but probably a deliberate one on the government's part. The shoddy emotional conditioning was another flaw in their training; not the shoddiness but that someone had tried to make them suppress their feelings. That was just a disaster waiting to happen.

A thought occurred to her, a wicked, naughty thought that made her want to giggle and find Shanks or Ace just so she could share it. It was almost a good deed, from a certain perspective: she could teach these oh-so-overconfident killers a little bit about the true art of assassination and the importance of taking opponents seriously. They had Robin snared somehow, probably due to her past being caught up in the Ohara mess, so Luffy would clash with them sooner or later. All she had to do was make sure nobody died.

Oh yes, Cipher Pol Number Nine and the Straw Hats could learn so much from one-another. Fox really did giggle evilly then, right before dropping down to eavesdrop on the oblivious agents below her. Maybe one of them would be able to give her a proper fight. If not she would have to hunt someone strong down soon to make sure she wasn't getting lazy. Maybe Ace; she could give him back his hat then. Or else she could wait until they reached Sabaody as there would be plenty of strong people there.

Fox blinked, suddenly realising that she was spoiling for a fight. Not an assassination mission, not a spar, but a bloody, frenzied melee where she could bathe in the blood of her enemies and laugh at the music made by their terrified screams. She hadn't lied when she'd told the Straw-Hats that her lack of bounty was a product of a lack of witnesses; she had destroyed a large number of entire pirate crews, a few towns and the odd secret base in her time. All had been doing things she considered so reprehensible that utterly eradicating them had seemed the best course of action. Several had been connected to the long arm of Donquixote Doflamingo, which she did not consider a coincidence as he was responsible for her sale at the Human Auctioning House at the age of nine, among other things. Personally responsible: he'd grabbed her off the street and carried herall the way there tucked under one arm. She didn't know why he'd done it, though Fox suspected it had something to do with her father. It _might_ have been casual cruelty, but then again it might not as the man was insane in a cold, rational way that was rather frightening to watch.

She shook her head, putting the lanky Shichibukai out of her mind. Deciding what to do next was the important issue; everything else would follow on.

"What _should_ I do?" she asked softly from her vantage point once the conspirators below had dispersed. Well, the obvious first thing was to make sure Iceberg didn't die; beyond that she would have to wait and see.

* * *

Fortunately ensuring Iceberg would not die of his wounds did not keep her out past the time she'd promised to return to her crew; she found the Straw-Hats moving their remaining possessions –including Nami's mikan trees– to a hotel and silently healed Luffy's injuries before pitching in. Nobody seemed inclined to sleep, but Fox managed to coax Zoro into snuggling up with her on the bed and drifted off in his arms, needing the security his presence offered away from the safety of a familiar ship.

She dreamed of the Whitebeard Pirates that night, of sparring with Vista on deck, playing cards with Marco and messing around with Ace while their massive captain Edward Newgate laughed at their antics.

"Did you find Robin?" were Zoro's first words to her in the morning.

"Yes." Fox said simply as she accepted the food he'd brought her and gulped down the mug of grog. Zoro waited patiently for her to continue, sitting across the room from her on an armchair.

"She's in the company of some very strong people I've never met before but have definite suspicions about," Fox went on, "covert, government-type suspicions, meaning we'll have to take care."

"Strong?"

"Very."

"As strong as you?" Fox thought about it.

"Physically, they are stronger," she admitted, "but they are not more skilled overall. A good deal less in fact, even in direct combat."

Zoro smirked darkly. "Should be fun then."

Fox smiled indulgently, though the expression likely had a predatory edge. She too thought the coming confrontation would be fun. She fixed her hair, re-tied her bandanna, put on her sunglasses and adjusted her hat; today already had a great deal of promise and it wasn't even properly past breakfast time. Never mind that the Aqua Laguna was due…

Zoro napped on the roof while the rest of the crew split up to either look for Robin or see how Iceberg was; Fox went for a quick shopping trip then found a stable of Rabuka Bulls to coo over: larger and fiercer than the Yagura Bulls but not as big as the gigantic King Bulls, she found them both intelligent and adorable. The stable owner was definitely startled to find her being fawned over by the biggest, meanest male in the building, but he was happy to expound on all his Bulls at length when she professed an interest. She was still there when someone dashed in claiming the Straw-Hate Pirates had tried to kill Iceberg, which was unexpected but not exceptionally so: Robin had been there when he was shot and she had a bounty, making her easily recognised. Luffy and Zoro would also be targeted as they had bounty posters as well, and since Nami was with the captain she would probably get caught up in the rush.

Sighing, Fox said goodbye to the Bulls she had been visiting, thanked their owner for his hospitality and set off back to the hotel for her weapons; her South Bird would make sure nobody messed with the clothing and other low-value items she had with her but the knives, twin swords and miscellaneous other tools for killing would not help their cause if they were found.

* * *

Fox managed to get in and out of the window of hers and Zoro's room before the Gallery-La shipwrights arrived to demand whether the hotelier had seen them. She wasn't worried about their stuff as it was more likely to be confiscated than anything else, besides Cho the South Bird had promised to guard it for her. She had made it clear that he was guarding it against damage and petty theft: if someone tried to move _all_ of it, he was to accompany them. Considering Cho could summon and command insects, she suspected anyone trying for revenge would get a nasty shock.

Her weapons retrieved and hidden on her person, Fox staked out a rooftop and sat down to think.

Firstly, she had to take steps to avoid getting a bounty under her real name, as it would put her family at risk. Second she could not, _could not_ do anything that connected her in any way to the Phantom Fox, as that would bring the full weight of the Gorosei down upon the Straw-Hats at once. Zanchou was back on Swift Hunter and would have to stay there; a real shame. She loved that sword.

Her current appearance was sufficiently different that, so long as she didn't lose the hat, bandannas and tinted glasses, she could get away with someone taking a picture of her and not connecting it to how she looked without the accessories. That however would mean said accessories would become a permanent part of her look for as long as she sailed with Luffy. Fox considered it; it was practical, comfy and she looked fairly badass, though a lot of people would recognise the hat and tease her about it later. However she needed a personality to go with the look, something that would inspire a certain kind of nickname that was a strong antithesis to steady, understated yet menacing Dracule Lisska. That meant she had to be at least moderately erratic, visibly violent and fairly flamboyant. Well, she was dressed for that last one.

A little thought had Fox putting together a mask that spoke in the third person like 'Black Cage' Hina, gave people disturbing nicknames, was very honest, utterly obedient to her captain and wildly bipolar. The bipolar part meant she could relapse back into her more gentle everyday self without undue comment, but become violent, bloodthirsty and visibly enjoy killing people whenever it was time to fight. She would also use the more destructive abilities of her Devil Fruit openly, leading outside observers to believe that all it was good for was killing. Fox giggled manically, trying it out.

"Fox will find her Greenie," she told herself in singsong tones, "so her Greenie knows the whys and wherefores. Then Fox will find the chef so he knows too. Then Fox will see what she can see and maybe my captain will let me kill someone." She licked her lips and giggled again. "Fun!"

* * *

Fox shows some of skills.


	31. Contact

**Contact**

Sanji had just sent Chopper to find Luffy and was wringing the last of the seawater from his shirt when Fox dropped down from the roof and bounced over to him.

"Fox has something to say," she informed him in a childish, singsong voice. The chef froze, taking in her radically different body language and barely-hidden assortment of weapons.

"Go on," he said cautiously, putting on his shirt.

"Fox is captain's nakama, so Fox will fight for him," she said seriously, eyes looking almost green behind the tinted lenses. "But Fox' other self must be blameless, because the other knows important people like Admiral Bluebird. So Fox must be different. Fox will be seen, because Fox' captain is a good person and won't let Fox kill everyone to keep secrets. Fox has told her Greenie and now Dancer knows too."

Sanji guessed 'Dancer' was him and this wild, childish persona that vibrated with barely-restrained violence was something he'd have to get used to. At least he got a better nickname than the marimo. "So what now, Fox-chan?" he asked.

Fox smiled a little too widely for comfort. "Fox will go with Dancer and then Fox will go back to her Greenie," she announced, hauling him upright. "Then Fox will bring her Greenie and captain and crew to kill meanies who took Blackbird." She paused, "Except for silly killer-people: Fox promised to teach them a lesson and dead people can't take their tests afterwards."

Sanji tried to make sense of that but got lost part-way through so just memorised it instead. "Let us be off then, fair lady," he said gallantly, offering her an arm. Fox giggled and accepted it.

"Dancer is funny," she confided, leaning into him like a small child. Wide, innocent eyes blinked at him from behind her glasses. "Will Dancer buy sweets for Fox?"

* * *

As Luffy struggled beneath the staples that held him to the floor next to the rope guy from Dock One, his invasion of the Gallery-La building having temporarily been foiled, somebody stepped into his line of sight from the corner of the room:

"Captain called for Fox?"

"Yeah!" Luffy said, wriggling as he tried to extricate himself. "Get us out! We have to go beat up those guys who took Robin!"

Fox nodded. "Captain wants to stop the silly killer-people from taking his Blackbird. Fox will get captain's friend out as captain can get himself out."

Luffy blinked. "I can?"

Fox smiled fondly. "Silly captain is stretchy."

"Oh! Right!"

Luffy extricated himself as Fox pulled out the bands holding Rope Guy to the floor with little difficulty. "Captain should be more careful," she scolded gently. "Greenie and Forecast and Four-Legs are inside too."

It did not take Luffy vey long to connect 'greenie' with Zoro and 'four-legs' with Chopper, which meant 'forecast' was probably Nami.

"Finally!" Rope Guy said as Fox pulled out the last staple. "Let's go!" He dashed out of the room, Luffy right behind him.

"Wait for me!"

"Fox will see you there!" his master of disguise called after him.

* * *

Right after Robin escaped out of the window after declaring she was leaving the Straw-Hats –a departure Luffy had declared he did _not_ agree with– Fox materialised behind Rob Lucci and knifed him in the shoulder, making him throw Luffy aside and try to turn around.

"Hello Kitten," she crooned in his ear as she twisted the knife, staying behind him with ease, "did you mother never teach you how to play with you food properly?" She yanked the knife out and retreated a few steps to stand over Zoro. "Naughty Square, hurting my Greenie like that," she admonished Kaku, "just because he beat you at swords."

"Who are you?" Lucci demanded.

"Kitten doesn't know?" Fox tipped her head to one side. "Poor, ignorant Kitten. Fox is Fox and you stole my captain's Blackbird. Bad Kitten!"

"Who the hell are you guys!" Paulie recovered enough to ask. Lucci turned his attention from Fox to the rope-wielding shipwright to answer the question, going into considerable unnecessary detail in his arrogance.

"Is Kitten sure he is an assassin?" she asked cutely once the man finally finished his boasting. "Kitten sounds more like a hitman to Fox. Assassins talk less and are better at killing people."

"Fox!" Zoro hissed. "Don't provoke him!"

Fox pouted. "Greenie is mean. Fox is just trying to stop Kitten from-" she dodged Lucci's Shigan with obvious ease "-embarrassing himself. Kitten thinks he's the biggest fish in the pond but he's never swum in the sea before. Kitten needs to pay more attention to what lurks in the depths or he will get gobbled up and never see daylight again!" All through the second half of the conversation Fox had been dodging blows and dancing just out of reach, further infuriating the CP9 agent with every passing second.

Lucci assumed his gigantic Zoan half-leopard form and snarled at her. Fox raised an eyebrow.

"Kitten is cute, but Rabuka Bulls are cuter," she informed him seriously as smoke began to rise between the boards beneath their feet, dodging his furious lunge and tweaking his ear. "Kitten needs to work on his temper," she added superfluously.

"Lucci, the other shipwrights are coming," Kalifa said, drawing the angry Zoan's attention away from Fox.

"No, they can't," Lucci said, turning to fire a kick at the wall, "Rankyaku." Half the building crumpled and Fox wrapped herself in the Colour of Absence –as she called her variation on the Colour of Armament– so she could stay where she was without taking damage. However as she emerged through the rubble she saw Lucci send Nami flying and decided to mess the leopard-man around for a bit longer.

"If Kitten throws his toys away every time he has a tantrum people will stop buying them," she said helpfully, letting herself become truly physical again.

"You… who are you?" Lucci demanded again.

"Kitten does not remember?" Fox asked, raising an eyebrow and adjusting her hat. "Fox told you already. Captain wants to fight you for hurting Snowflake and String, so I think you shouldn't attack them," she added as she stepped between the Zoan and the shipwrights, his clawed Shigan piercing her shirt but not her Hardened skin beneath it. "Go away," she told the massive leopard-man flatly as he stared at her in disbelief. "Fox is bored of playing with you."

Fox drew her swords, letting the darker aspects of her Devil Fruit Power wrap around the blades. She then let one blade graze the nearby bedpost and as the entire frame collapsed into dust she kept her eyes on the CP9 agents. "Will Fox be killing you today?" she asked levelly, settling into a stance that would allow her to both attack and defend.

"We should leave," Kalifa said urgently as the flames around them rose higher. Lucci tensed, then stepped backwards and returned to his human form.

"We will find the blueprints, Iceberg," the would-be assassin said coldly, turning and vanishing out of the window. Once all four agents were gone Fox put her blades away and turned to face the shipwrights.

"Let Fox look at Snowflake, String," she said to Paulie. "Fox can fix things as well as break them." The shipwright stared at her, but didn't stop her from poking his boss' face with a glowing finger.

"Snowflake will be fine," Fox assured him after a pause, "but Fox needs to find Four-Legs before leaving. Can you wait a while?"

Paulie laughed a little hysterically. "Sure! As long as we don't burn to death before you find him!"

"Fox won't let that happen!" Fox pouted. "Captain likes you! Besides," she pointed out, "you need to be alive to clear our names, yes?"

"True," Iceberg coughed.

"Fox will be quick!" the woman promised, vanishing into the smoke towards the heap of fallen stone and picking up Sandai Kitetsu from amongst the rubble. "Hello, wicked one," she murmured as she headed towards where she could feel Chopper. "Bare with me for a little while and I'll get you back to your swordsman."

In her hand, the blade hummed gently.


	32. Chase

**Chase **

It took longer than Fox liked to extricate Chopper from the rubble, but once it was done she loaded Iceberg onto his back, grabbed Paulie and smashed the window overlooking the street.

"Jump!" she shouted over the roar of the flames. Chopper jumped, Fox sailing lightly after him with a cursed sword in one hand and a shipwright slung over the opposite shoulder.

Chopper landed heavily, stumbled and collapsed; Fox landed lightly, deposited Paulie on the grass and hurried over to Nami, placing her free hand flat on the younger woman's forehead. Fox knew Nami didn't like her, mostly because they didn't know each-other very well and the other woman saw Fox' refusal to share a room with the navigator as a rebuff. It wasn't, but Fox wasn't quite comfortable enough with the Straw-Hats –other than Zoro, who had never asked– to share exactly _why_ she could not share a bedroom with other women without suffering screaming nightmares.

The navigator opened her eyes. "Fox?"

"Forecast-chan has broken bones," Fox said seriously, letting her eyes peek over the top of her sunglasses beneath the shadow of her hat. "Fox is fixing them."

Nami smiled. "Thank-you Fox. Why are you–?"

"Shh!" Fox said sharply. "Fox has people to protect. People mustn't connect Fox with her other self, the one the admiral named. There would be trouble all round and Fox would lose money."

Nami nodded. "I'm sorry; I understand needing to protect your family," she apologised sincerely. "So this is the new you?"

"Crazy Fox is public face," the assassin corrected. "Fox will be saner in private, Fox promises."

"Good," Nami muttered as Fox helped her sit up. "You are too creepy like this; watching you face off against those guys was terrifying."

"Fox apologises, but Fox can't help herself sometimes," Fox said candidly, pushing up her sunglasses. "Forecast-chan is fixed now; Fox will help Four-Legs."

Iceberg took Nami aside for a chat as Fox turned her attention to the Reindeer, but the navigator soon hurried back with the news that Robin had turned herself in so the Straw-Hats could leave Water Seven unmolested. As the only way off the island right now was the Sea Train, Nami was desperate to get to the station and catch Robin but knew they also needed to find Luffy and Zoro as quickly as possible.

"Forecast should go to the station with Four-Legs," Fox said firmly. "Fox will find her Greenie and Captain just fine."

"Oh, of course!" Nami exclaimed. "You can sense them, can't you?"

"Fox always knows where her Greenie is," Fox said snootily, "and Fox will find her captain too." She bounced off, rocketing up the wall of a nearby building then hopping from rooftop to rooftop towards where she could feel two familiar energy signatures.

* * *

She found Zoro first, stuck head-down in a chimney in the lower circle of the city. Fox poked his foot: "Having fun down there?" she asked, unable to suppress her amusement.

"No," was the muffled reply. "Get me out!"

Fox patted his knee. "Yes, yes, Fox will get you out: Fox has Kitetsu!"

"What!" there was definite panic in the swordsman's voice. "Just give Kitetsu to me and I'll do it."

"No," Fox hopped down from the top of the chimney to the ridge of the roof and made a note of where the end of Zoro's energy signature was. "Fox will get you out; Kitetsu won't mind this once. Apparently it likes the blood on Fox' hands enough to let Fox use it this once." She swung the blade experimentally; it was considerably lighter than Zanchou. "Hold still please." She relaxed, curving the blade over one shoulder then jumping upwards, slashing forward through the stonework to shear off one side of the chimney. Zoro tumbled out of the gap knees first, sliding down the side of the roof but catching himself before he fell over the edge.

"Next time just let me do it," he grumbled, scrambling up the roof to take the cursed sword back from her and resheathe it at his hip.

"Fox missed you too," the assassin quipped, kissing his cheek and running a glowing hand over the bleeding injury in his gut where Kakau had used Shigan on him. "Now we have to get the captain."

"If he hasn't made a ruckus yet he's probably stuck," Zoro decided. "Which direction is he in from here?"

"Fox pointed. "He is a bit higher than normal roof level over in that direction."

Zoro looked. "So," he said slowly, "he might be stuck amongst those taller buildings just there?" the swordsman pointed. Fox looked.

"Yes," she agreed, "he is."

Zoro frowned. "That's not a very wide gap, is it?"

"It's a very narrow gap," Fox confirmed. "Fox will go back up top to see what Nami thinks; Fox would like a second opinion and she's close by." Fox had sensed Nami and Chopper reach the station just in time to miss the train and double back to help look for Luffy and Zoro alongside the rest of the Gallery-La workers who had been hustled into helping by Paulie.

Zoro headed towards Luffy's position, jumping from rooftop to rooftop. Delaying her departure just enough to ensure her swordsman had gone in the right direction, Fox then jumped onto the bridge then up to the upper level of the city to waylay Nami.

"Fox has found our captain, Forecast-chan," she said brightly, landing right in front of the navigator and making her jump, "but the captain is stuck. Come and see," she held out a hand.

Nami immediately climbed onto Fox' back and held on tight as the assassin bounced down to the rooftops of the lower level and across to the line of tall buildings where Luffy was stuck and Zoro was waiting.

"There, see?" Fox said, pointing over to the gap between the two wide towers. Nami immediately began shouting at their captain while Fox hurried over to where Zoro was looking out to sea.

"The tide's gone a very long way down," the swordsman noted, hands caressing his sword hilts.

"It will come back a very long way up then," Fox said flatly, taking in the flopping fish the retreating sea had left behind. "A very, very long way up indeed."

At the other end of the building Nami was telling Luffy about Robin sacrificing herself to the government for the crew and the stonework on either side of the rubberman was starting to creak ominously.

"Here it comes," Zoro said flatly, gazing at the massive wave that filled the horizon.

"Fox hopes Swift Hunter is alright," Fox muttered.

"I hope Luffy hurries up!" Zoro countered. "Hunter's probably gotten well out of the way, not like us."

There was a rumble, a groan and a crash the tops of the two buildings holding Luffy in were pushed apart. Fox grabbed Zoro's hand:

"Run!"

* * *

Paulie wasn't quite sure what to think of the Straw-Hat crew; a shapeshifting reindeer, a crazy navigator, an insanely strong swordsman and a swordswoman who was just flat-out insane plus their impossibly strong rubber captain. He was almost dreading meeting this Sanji guy who had boarded the Sea Train in order not to lose Nico Robin.

As the four Straw-Hats down in the lower city dashed towards the bridge ahead of the wave, the captain carrying the shameless redhead and stretching his arms to grab onto the stonework even as the two sword users dashed from rooftop to rooftop as though they had springs for legs, Paulie remembered what Luffy had told him while they were stapled to the floor in the mansion and what Nami has said to Iceberg afterwards. They didn't care about the odds against them; they just succeeded.

The shipwright dashed across the first level of the bridge and threw down ropes towards the four pirates as the Aqua Laguna crashed into them, waves higher than he had ever seen before. The Fox girl was actually laughing as the water tried to suck her away, the scowling swordsman dragging her onwards. Then the bridge cracked in several places under his feet.

"Run!" he shouted at them as they landed on the stone paving just ahead of the first break, turning to dash towards the high ground. The captain had the shameless girl slung over his shoulder and the sword users were hand-in-hand, perfectly in sync despite the five-inch height difference. The woman was still laughing, one hand keeping her hat in place. She spun on the spot as soon as they were out of the water's reach and whooped like a madwoman.

"Can Fox do it again?!"

"No!" The swordsman said instantly. Fox pouted, then walked over to Paulie and held a glowing hand to the side of his face. As soon as she did so the shipwright could feel his injuries knitting together.

"Is String feeling better?" she asked solicitously. Paulie ignored the silly nickname, deciding that objecting would probably not change anything.

"Much better, thank-you," he said gruffly, climbing to his feet.

"Ah! You're all alright!" The reindeer said, hurrying onto the scene.

"Captain still has holes in him," Fox said dryly, leaving Paulie's side to place a hand on Luffy's shoulder; the rubberman smiled at her, then looked around.

"Where's Sanji?" he asked.

* * *

Not so many updates today; I'm drugged to the gills. Bah.


	33. Runaway

**Runaway**

As Kokoro the elderly mermaid led the Straw-Hats through the driving rain to where she claimed there was a Sea Train, Fox swayed alongside Zoro, who had wrapped an arm around her waist when she had leaned a little too far over the parapet to watch the waves and was yet to let go again. As she swayed she hummed, a wild tune that raced up and down the scale in and out of the human hearing range in time with the beat of the Aqua Laguna. Mermaids were a peaceful and secretive race, but they were by no means weak: some of her kindred were likely dancing in the currents below the surface, rejoicing in the strength of the sea. Chopper was watching her nervously from the corner of his eye, twitching when she hit the deep base notes that made her bones hum and were almost inaudible; Fox ignored him. Her attention was partly caught by the passion and power of the sea, but mostly caught up in the feel of Zoro's fingers idly caressing the bare skin just above her right hip between the lower edge of her torn tank top and the top of her trousers. It was slowly driving her crazy and he was doing it on purpose, despite the seriousness of the situation.

To pay him back she wrapped her left arm loosely around the back of his neck and gently ran her fingertips up the side of his throat. The faint growl by her ear and the thrill of heat that tickled her perception through the connection they shared told her she'd succeeded.

"Don't," he warned her lowly. "Not now."

Fox smiled sweetly at him, letting the tinted glasses slide down her wet nose so she could really look him in the eye. "Does that mean you will play with me later?" she inquired, knowing that right now her eyes were mostly black with a fine golden rind around the pupil.

Zoro gave her a predatory look that promised all kinds of deliciously dangerous things. "Play?" he repeated roughly. "This is a game to you?"

Fox smirked. "All is fair in love and war," she whispered in his ear, so close her lips brushed his skin, "and this is both."

The swordsman's heated stare and hungry smile indicated he was perfectly willing to play by those rules and his fingers dug into her flesh for an instant as they entered the warehouse the train was in. "Afterwards then," he agreed.

Fox stayed snuggled into Zoro's side as Iceberg revealed he had already got the train running and warned them that the train didn't have any way of stopping. When Nami showed up with masses of meat and sake to help Luffy and Zoro recover the white-haired assassin simply moved around so she was leaning against her swordsman's back, arms clasped around his chest and forehead slumped on his shoulder as they sat in the train carriage waiting for the engine to be ready to leave.

Then the Franky Family showed up, wanting to join them; Luffy agreed they could, but the dismantlers claimed to have their own transportation and said they would hitch onto the back of the train once it was moving. Fox didn't mention the three people hiding in the coal bunker; they weren't dangerous and she recognised them.

The train moved. Fox sung happily as the wheels started moving and the carriage rattled.

"The runaway train went down the track and she blew…"

* * *

Zoro couldn't help smiling as the train went airborne as it left the tunnel, Fox now seated across his lap with her face pressed against his neck, dozing lightly. She had taken off her sodden coat and hat and hung them over the corner of the bench to dry a little and her tank top had five wide tears in it over her stomach where Lucci had tried to use his Shigan on her. Zoro wanted to know how the hell she'd managed to get away without a scratch from a move that strong, but it would have to wait until after they had Robin back. As it was her soaked and torn clothing left very little of her upper body to the imagination and the way she was sprawled over him gave the swordsman a very good view down her front if he tilted his head just so. Part of his brain was remembering how she'd looked at the baths in Alabasta and he was making steady inroads on the alcohol Nami had brought in an attempt to keep his mind on the coming fight.

"Urgent message from the control Room!" blared out over the speakers. "We will be latching onto the rail soon and that means our speed will increase considerably! Please brace yourselves so you'll only receive minor injuries!"

"So we'll get hurt no matter what?" Nami said incredulously.

Fox sat up, stretched backwards like a cat –widening the tears in her top as she did so– then grabbed Zoro's belt and gently dragged him down off the bench to the floor of the carriage, kneeling over his legs and gripping the edge of the seat that was now behind his shoulders.

"Hold on tight," she warned him, her smile very fey. Zoro had a moment to wonder if she knew something he didn't, then the sudden acceleration threw them both sideways away from the bench towards the far end of the carriage, where they landed in a tangled heap next to the door and just below the harpoons keeping the Franky Family's carriage attached to the train. As they were launched into the air Zoro had grabbed onto Fox' middle, meaning that when they landed he found himself sprawled on top of her, his face planted firmly in her chest. Trying to get off in a hurry was a total failure as his legs were caught up in hers as well, so the attempted retreat simply made him overbalance and he dragged them both to the ground again, her now tangled on top of him in an equally suggestive manner.

Zoro blushed as Fox' eyes laughed at him even as she made a show of reluctantly getting off him, feeling his instinctive reaction had been rather foolish. Fox didn't mind being manhandled by him, she never had, and now they were seriously involved with each-other it followed she would mind even less. However he had been thinking about the upcoming fight rather than Fox when they were thrown across the room and had been caught off-guard.

"How about we try that again in private sometime," she murmured with a grin as the doors at both ends of the carriage opened and people streamed in, fleeing the acceleration and complaining about injuries. Once everyone was seated in a rough circle, Fox kneeling behind Zoro with her chest flush against his back, the swordsman took stock of their company.

"Wait a minute," he said, frowning, "there are some suspicious-looking people in here." He was referring to the three Gallery-La shipwrights who had appeared from somewhere. Zoro however tuned out the Paulie's impassioned rant about getting revenge for Iceberg and the Franky Family's response, more concerned about Fox' now deeper and more even breathing. Had she fallen asleep?

"Luffy?" he asked, interrupting his captain as the rubberman started a speech, "is Fox asleep?"

Luffy froze, turned and came to kneel in front of Zoro to peer at the woman's face. "She's asleep," he confirmed seriously, wide eyes a little nervous. He then turned to face the rest of the company:

"Everyone be quiet now; she's scary when you wake her up."

Luffy then proceeded to bring all present together with a moving and impassioned but very quiet speech about what they were going to do and Zoro was once more reassured that his captain really could do anything so long as he was determined enough. However first they had to get past the Aqua Laguna.

"Zoro?" Luffy asked once the Franky Family had climbed out onto the train to fire at the wave, "Can you get out without waking her up?"

The swordsman shifted slightly on the spot; testing Fox' grip on his chest. "Doubtful; I can try to talk her into letting me go, though." He twisted around, lifting an arm over her head so he could look her in the face. Taking a deep breath, he ignored the ringing of the Den Den Mushi, the howling storm, everything except the relaxed, peaceful face now cradled in his hands. "Fox?" he murmured.

She didn't stir. Zoro kissed her, wondering as he did so how she could possibly taste like Sea King meat when he knew she never ate the stuff. The kiss made her stir, bringing her closer to reality but not really awake yet.

"Let go of me, please Fox?" he murmured gently against her lips, not rushing her. Haste was fatal.

She made a faintly inquiring noise.

"The captain needs me for something, Fox. Please let go; I'll be back as soon as I can."

The noise this time was distinctly unhappy, but she let go of him. Zoro lowered her carefully to the floor, pressed another kiss to her lips and hurried out of the carriage window, turning to glare at the few remaining people:

"Don't you _dare_ to wake her."

* * *

He returned a few minutes later, having helped break through the Aqua Laguna alongside Luffy, and carefully pulled his girlfriend onto his lap as Nami handed their captain the Den Den Mushi: it seemed Sanji had finally bothered to call. Fox leaned into him, still completely out of it and far less subtle about seeking skin contact than when awake. Zoro ignored the feeling of her nibbling on his neck –it wasn't the first time she'd done that– and kept a firm hold of her hands as he listened to the chef report what was happening on the other train.

The Straw-Hats made sure they kept their voices reasonably low throughout the conversation, despite Sanji's refusal to put off trying to rescue Robin until the rest of the crew was there. No matter how much Zoro wanted to lay into the cook for being reckless, waking Fox really wasn't worth it. When the conversation ended Zoro leant back against the cabin wall and groaned; he closed his eyes, gritted his teeth and counted slowly to ten. Fox had made her way up his neck and was now sucking on his earlobe. It was torture, pure and simple.

There was a choked sound from across the cabin: Zoro glanced over and saw Chopper in his human form with a hand firmly over Paulie's mouth. He shipwright looked outraged about something.

"Look, I know you're a prude," Nami said in quiet exasperation, "but if you wake her up we won't be in any state to rescue anyone. She'll flatten all of us in an instant, except possibly Luffy and Zoro."

Said swordsman had lost one of Fox' hands, which had slipped up under the front of his sodden shirt and was resting over his heart. "Are there any dry clothes we can change into?" he asked abruptly, now very aware that _his_ Fox was also wearing a soaking wet and torn top and that the only thing preserving her anonymity was a sodden bandanna, the pair of tinted lenses having fallen off her face not long after she drifted off. "Fox needs a new shirt."


	34. Approach

**Approach**

Getting Fox into a new shirt was fairly easy: it turned out she carried a small bag in the small of her back inside her coat where she kept useful things that weren't weapons, including four spare bandannas, a flowery navy halter top and a number of other female accessories Zoro didn't look too closely at as Nami emptied it out. The navigator was very careful not to fiddle with any of the many, many knives fitted into the coat lining, though she grumbled lightly about Fox holding out on her when she found a thick wad of beli in one of the coat pockets.

"Fox never asks you for money," Zoro pointed out, "and has her own source of income. I know she regularly contributes towards food and all the clothes we got in Alabasta were bought with her funds."

Nami growled, but put the money back. Fox' coat was barely damp, being oiled and mostly waterproof, so Zoro used it as a shield as he eased her out of the torn, sodden tank top and into the clean, dry halter top after using his own discarded shirt as a towel. Her trousers were dry enough as they too were waterproof so Zoro's main problem was dealing with Fox' hair. It took him ten minutes of careful thought and repeated failures to get her braids pinned to her head properly again but once he had done so and got a bandanna over them the result was almost as tidy as when she had done it herself the previous morning. Tying another clean bandanna around her neck to obscure her jawline and fitting the hat on her head, Zoro then let the coat drop onto her shoulders and put on the orange jacket he had been offered to replace his ruined shirt. He didn't do up the front as it was slightly too small, but other than that it was comfortable enough.

Nobody had really been paying attention to him changing Fox' clothing as Nami had stripped in the middle of the cabin and put on a whole new set of clothes, not caring that she had an audience. Zoro didn't care either; it meant nobody had got a good look at Fox' face. He tucked her sunglasses in her coat pocket so she could put them on once she woke up, which hopefully would be spontaneous rather than forced as she was lethally unpleasant when she hadn't had enough sleep. Thankfully his presence had the effect of making her a very heavy sleeper; otherwise she would have woken up by now as the people who weren't Straw-Hats had forgotten she was there.

As Fox had settled down a little and seemed content to rest with her head on his shoulder, Zoro was calmly preparing himself for the fight to come and making sure the rest of the clowns kept the noise down when one of the Frankies –Zoro thought his name was Zambai– spotted two sea-train cars on the line ahead.

"Luffy, what do we do now?" Chopper asked.

"I'll check it out!" Luffy said, using his rubber arms to propel himself ahead down the line. Zoro sighed and carefully lifted Fox off himself onto the floor, making sure there was a folded sleeve under her head. Luffy would probably want him to deal with the obstacle once it had been checked out, so he climbed out onto the front of the train again. He did have a few techniques that could do that now; he'd gotten more interested in Iaido after seeing Fox' alter ego use it to cut that lock in Crocodile's headquarters and experimented a bit.

Luffy did indeed want Zoro to cut the train cars in half, so the swordsman did it. He then took out Captain T-Bone a little further down the line, who was pursuing the Sea Train on foot. Zoro did offer him a chance to get out of the way, but the marine didn't take it and was defeated. His job done, Zoro returned to Fox, pulled her on top of him and let himself drop off.

* * *

Sanji sat in the detached carriage, broken and bleeding, thinking about what a shitty day this had been so far. Oh, it had started out well enough: he and Fox had made it down to the station long before the train was due to leave so the chef could stake out the place, then the erratic-acting assassin had gone back to find the rest of the crew. She had not returned with them in time to catch the train, so Sanji had leapt on the back of the final carriage after leaving a letter and a Den Den Mushi for Nami so he could stay in touch.

He had fought his way through the first two carriages with ease and found Usopp –who he pretended not to know since the bastard had left the crew– and Franky, the guy who had stolen their money. Nonetheless, any help was better than nothing and Sanji had freed them and with them managed to whittle down the numbers on board the train by about fifty through a cunning bit of subterfuge and Franky's help separating the train carriages.

Sanji had then defeated a crazy who believed himself a chef and used ramen of all things to fight with and finally reached the carriage with the people who had taken Robin away. Then things had gone really downhill, as Robin had been most reluctant to be rescued and the two guys who actually fought him were both ridiculously strong and resilient. It had taken Usopp –wearing a silly mask and claiming to be a guy called 'Sogeking'– using a smoke pellet and Franky detaching the carriage couplings to get them away with Robin. It had been a futile effort however as the woman had used a thorny whip to catch the departing carriages and the guy with the cow hair had pulled them back again.

Franky had sacrificed himself ripping the carriage in half to give them a second shot at escaping, but the cow guy had a Devil Fruit Power that let him open doors into anywhere and he came to get Robin, who went willingly. Said Cow then injured both him and Usopp further and explained exactly _why_ Robin had left them, which made the chef very, very angry indeed. However there had been nothing he could do about it so here he was, stuck in a train carriage most of the way to Enies Lobby, waiting for the rest of his crew to catch up with an injured Usopp in a silly costume and no Robin.

A really shitty day thus far; Sanji lit a cigarette and promised himself he would kick the shit out of at least one of those guys once he reached Enies Lobby with the rest of his crew.

* * *

Fox remained asleep until Sanji finished his story of why Robin had abandoned them, at which point Luffy shouted,

"I don't care! I won't forgive them!"

at the top of his voice. He had just taken a deep breath so he could go on ranting when a brown booted foot caught him squarely in the gut and splattered him against the ceiling. All present quailed at the murderous aura emanating from the very disgruntled woman in the black cowboy hat.

"Who is dying?" she growled.

"Nobody!" Chopper squeaked, hiding behind Sanji.

"Then why is Fox **awake**?!" it was practically a roar.

Everybody pointed at Luffy, who had just extricated himself from the ruined ceiling and let himself down to ground level. Fox turned her gaze to her captain, who snatched off his hat and apologised profusely before hurrying into an explanation of why he'd been shouting.

Fox snorted. "Fox knows all this. Fox looked up why Blackbird had a bounty; Fox is no fool. And Fox wants to kill people."

"We're nearly there now," Zoro assured her. Fox snarled.

"Fox means _now_. Fox is awake and Fox is unhappy. Fox needs to kill things until Fox feels better."

Paulie took advantage of the abrupt, nervous silence to call everyone over to look at the map he had made of Enies Lobby and explain the various features. Rather than hanging over Zoro Fox stood right behind the seated Luffy, who seemed oblivious to the crushing cloud of killing intent billowing around her. When Luffy was about to leave to begin his assault on the island, not paying much attention to other people present after deciding on a course of action, Fox caught his shoulder.

"Fox is coming with you," she said quietly; "Fox will keep stupid Seagulls from slowing her captain down."

Luffy nodded agreement and the two of them set out.

* * *

Arriving at Enies Lobby...


	35. Assault

**Assault**

After Luffy dropped down inside the Front Gate of Enies Lobby Fox finally climbed off his back, drew both her swords and ran ahead of him into the gathering Marines, blades coated with the terrible force of her Devil Fruit Power. As she danced, circled and cut down all who stood in her way with fluidity and precision she let the darker side of her power buoy her up, drawing her towards the larger knots of marines so she could take down more at a time.

Aged thirteen, Fox had been fed an unknown Devil Fruit because she was part-mermaid and her owner had wanted to see exactly how much it would change her, but also because he hadn't known what it was. As it happened, what the arrogant fool had forced down her throat had been one of the legendary Logias, the Mei Mei no Mi: the Life-Life Fruit which granted awareness of and control over vitality. Fox could heal by sharing her own never-ending life-force with others, but she could also kill by taking away from others or even simply by disrupting or overloading their bodies with it.

Fox rarely ever used that aspect of her power: her teacher had always made clear that though she was an assassin, killing should always be both deliberate and require effort of some kind; you are prematurely ending a person's life so it should _mean_ something. Fox' powers made it too easy to kill, so easy she could –and had in the past– do it accidentally in her sleep. She had trained herself not to use that aspect of her power to the point that it required deliberate effort to counter the mental block, which in her opinion was as it should be. However now her captain was attacking the front step of the world government and she needed to take down as many people as possible without showcasing too many of her more exotic and recognisable skills, so she used what her shishou had termed 'the Death Touch', the ability to steal away the life-force of others at the moment she came into contact with it. As she could project this aspect of her power over her blades, her reach was long and the bodies piled up very quickly indeed.

Behind her lay a trail of bodies, some dismembered, others barely grazed, and ever-increasing panic expanded around her like ripples in a pool. She circled the built-up area in a wide circle, leaving the main square to Luffy and ruthlessly destroying all the reinforcements she came across. Later she would go over the body count and honour those who had fallen to her, but as she called down Death to Enies Lobby she thought of nothing save striking down those who opposed her captain's will.

There was no shortage of them, though many tried to flee her now they knew what she could do. Not that they could run far; the Front Gate kept them in just as well as it kept other people out. A lot of them were screaming about 'shinigami' even as they fell before her; a distant part of her mind wondered if it would end up on her bounty poster.

The rush of life-force enhanced her strength, reflexes, metabolism and recovery time, so as she cut a crimson swath through the forces of the World Government she did not tie at all. In fact she had so much energy to burn she began to do flashy acrobatics and sing. Her choice of song did nothing for the morale of her opponents: if anything it made them run faster.

"I'll sing you one, oh,

"Green grow the rushes, oh!

"What is your one, oh?

"One is one and all alone

"And ever more shall be so!

"I'll sing you two, oh,

"Green grow the rushes, oh!

"What is your two, oh?

"Two, two, the lily-white boys

"Clothed all in green-i-oh!

"One is one and all alone

"And ever more shall be so!"

Fox had a powerful and fairly pleasant singing voice and she knew this particular song backwards and forwards, it having been the only properly child-friendly song her father knew that wasn't related to the either alphabet or counting. Plus, this song could be sung at whatever speed she chose and messed about with at her leisure. It was an old song with obscure religious connotations but her father had, in a desperate attempt to keep her in line, come up with new lyrics as she got older and wanted to learn more about the Grand Line. Thus, when she had got all the way up to twelve and back down again with the original words she started again:

"I'll sing you one, oh,

"Red flows the blood, yo ho!

"What is your one, oh?

"One is Death who comes to all

"And ne'er will be escaped, oh!

"I'll sing you two, oh,

"Red flows the blood, yo ho!

"What is your two, oh?

"Two are the halves, the Grand Line has,

"Wild are they to sail upon!

"One is Death who comes to all

"And ne'er will be escaped, oh!"

She loved the 'new and improved' versions; after finding out about them Shanks had come up with a few more piratical nursery rhymes for her which were very catchy and his crew had naturally contributed a whole lot of obscene ones which even now she was gaining new insight into. Truly, there was nothing like a pirate crew for giving a girl a thorough education.

"… What is your three, oh?

"Three, three, the Admirals,

"Two are the halves, the Grand Line has,

"Wild are they to sail upon!"

She sang on as she danced, her twin swords beginning to make a slight dent in the ten thousand men stationed on the island who were forced towards her by their superior officers.

"Four for the Pirate Emperors…" Any song about the Grand Line needed the Yonko; she also had a tamer version about the rest of the ocean which had 'Four for wide Blue Seas' in this bit.

"Five are the elders in Mariejois…" The Gorosei had a mention in her list for the incredible power they wielded.

"Six for the levels in Impel Down…" The Government's infamous prison needed a mention in any song about sailing the sea.

"Seven for the warlords wandering free…" The Shichibukai of course.

"Eight for the Cipher Pol cells…" The official ones, anyway.

"Nine for the hidden killers…" CP9, the people she was here to see today.

"Ten for the floating Islands…" Not including the Sky Islands of course, but there were ten islands on the Grand Line that moved, all of them in the New World.

"Eleven for the hour when the King was killed…" Gol D. Roger needed a mention in any nautical ditty worth its salt.

"Twelve for the living Ds…" She knew; she'd counted them. They weren't exactly hard to find once you knew what to look for either.

Fox had got up to "Sixteen divisions in Whitebeard's crew" and was slaughtering her way through the newly-arrived Hou-Bantai when the Franky Family and the Gallery-La trio arrived through the Front Gate, forcing her to pay a bit more attention to her surroundings than just 'don't kill the captain by accident'. They were followed by the Runaway Sea Train and the rest of her crew flying over both Gates, so Fox just left the field to them and hurried after Luffy instead.

Over two thousand men had fallen to her swords and Ability in a little under fifteen minutes.

* * *

Fox shows how deadly she can be and demonstrates how being raised by dangerous and powerful people can warp your personality.


	36. Lesson

**Lesson**

Fox leaped onto the roof of the courthouse behind her captain just in time to hear Blueno say:

"It seems that all of you still haven't noticed this sort of thing is a global-scale grand offense."

"Fox has noticed," she offered, shifting her shoulders and patting Luffy's shoulder as she stopped just behind him and a little to the left. "Fox just doesn't care." The agent with the cow-horn hair stiffened as he noticed her, no doubt remembering the confrontation in the Gallery-La building where she had bested Lucci.

"What're you talking about?" Luffy asked, not acknowledging Fox' presence beyond a faint shift in posture.

Blueno glanced at Fox before giving the Straw-Hat a brief run-down on the World Government and what invading Enies Lobby would mean in the future. Before Luffy could charge the agent however, Fox tapped him on the shoulder.

"Can Fox do this? Please? Captain should save himself for Kitten."

"Kitten?" Luffy repeated. "Oh, yeah, Pigeon-Guy!" He paused, frowning for a moment.

"Captain can watch," Fox pleaded. "Fox wants to teach Ox a lesson." Across the roof Blueno frowned at the insulting nickname. Luffy gazed at her for a moment, then nodded. Fox smiled and charged the agent.

Right before she entered his range however she vanished from sight.

* * *

Blueno did not have time to gape at her abrupt disappearance as blinding pain shot through his right hand and he lost control of his fingers.

"The first duty of the assassin is to strike unseen," said the woman known only as Fox as he turned to face her, his right hand dangling uselessly from his wrist. "An assassin does not make public their moves, motives or employers; an assassin is anonymous." She vanished again.

"Tekkai," Blueno said instantly, activating the defence, but his right elbow was still subjected to a painful strike that rendered his entire lower arm unresponsive. His eyes widened; how had she bypassed his defence?

"An assassin pinpoints weakness and strikes it precisely," his opponent continued, her voice having taken on the calm, didactic tone Blueno remembered from his days in training. "No strike is wasted; no target is missed." She vanished again. This time Blueno tried to dodge, using Soru to move himself away. The terrible pain that shot through his right shoulder and briefly pierced his brain however told him he had been unsuccessful.

"How?" he gasped at the woman who was now standing in front of him, her face overshadowed by her hat.

"An assassin is not the strongest of fighters, but the most accurate," Fox went on as though he hadn't spoken at all. "Speed is preferable to strength and a flexible mind stands above both. An assassin always remembers the mission and does not become sidetracked by petty distractions." This time Blueno tried to attack before she could, but she slipped through his fingers like smoke and disabled his left hand in passing. The agent turned at once and fired a Rankyaku strike across the rooftop; without his hands Shigan was now out of the question, though he doubted it would have worked anyway.

"An assassin knows their emotions completely but is not controlled by them," continued Fox' voice as the dust settled, coming from everywhere and nowhere as Blueno turned this way and that looking for her. "Rather they are strengthened by them. An assassin does not assume, but investigates thoroughly and verifies as far as possible before taking action." Blueno's left elbow went numb.

"Tekkai Rin," Blueno gasped and lunged towards the shadow on the edge of his vision that was Monkey D. Luffy. He didn't ever reach the pirate: blinding pain pierced his shoulder and dropped him to the flat, tiled roof that was their battleground, breathing hoarsely and trying not to throw up.

"An assassin is always ready for change, but does not plan so extensively they become mired in unnecessary details," continued the infuriatingly level voice above him. "An assassin is unafraid, because they walk with Death every day and know it better than any other."

Blueno knew now that they had made a grave mistake in targeting the Straw-Hat pirates; he had heard rumours of free-lance assassins on the Grand Line –there were rumours about everything and anything– but he'd never believed them. It seemed for once the rumour had held a grain of truth. He used his Devil Fruit to get away and tried to ambush her from behind. It failed, so he used Soru to keep moving, hoping the loss of feeling in his arms would not be permanent.

"An assassin does not brawl; neither do they show off their skills to those of lesser ability," came the voice of the woman again, cutting through his thoughts and filling him with profound concern. "An assassin's anonymity is their greatest treasure, for none can guard against the unknown." She stopped in front of him, a frown visible above the top of her sunglasses. "You and your colleagues are not worthy of being considered assassins, Ox. As Fox told Kitten earlier, you are nothing more than hitmen."

Blueno couldn't argue; it wasn't worth it and this was not an opponent he was comfortable pissing off. Instead he attacked with Rankyaku, dodged with Soru then attacked again.

"Hey!" Luffy's voice came from the sidelines. "I see how he does it now!"

Blueno froze.

"Fox shall finish him then." Fox' voice was right by the agent's ear but pain devoured him and dragged him down into darkness before he could respond.

* * *

Luffy looked down at the Cow Guy lying flat on his face on the roof. "Did you kill him?"

Fox shrugged. "Fox can if Captain wants but Fox was teaching Ox a lesson, so Ox will live to learn from it. If Ox does not learn Fox can kill him later." She turned and smiled at him. "Has Captain leaned as well?"

"Yeah!" Luffy said brightly. "I can do that Soru-thing now." He demonstrated, zipping this way and that across the rooftop. "But I didn't see how you did your thing; you were even faster than he was."

Fox ducked her head. "Soru is a cheat; Fox is just fast. You saw them use Shigan, at the Gallery-La mansion?"

"Yeah?" Luffy also remembered how much it had hurt.

"Fox moves feet like Shigan moves hands: swift but controlled. It is harder than Soru, but more efficient and accurate." Fox smirked. "Faster too, as Captain saw."

"How come he didn't see you?" Luffy asked. It had been very interesting seeing how the Cow Guy had always been so confused after she moved; Luffy had been able to see where she landed but her opponent never had.

Fox waggled a finger at her captain. "Naughty Captain, asking Fox for secrets! Fox will share this once though: eyes can only see so far, so Fox moved just past where Ox' eyes could follow and was still. Still things are harder to see."

"So you hid and made yourself invisible!" Luffy determined.

Fox giggled; Luffy liked the carefree sound. "Yes, Fox did. Fox was fair though; no special powers, not even when Ox cheated. Fox is a conscientious teacher."

"All that stuff you said…" Luffy went over her words in his mind, "you are an assassin, aren't you? That's why you haven't got a bounty."

"Fox is. Fox will get one after today though, Fox thinks. There are too many Seagulls for Fox to kill them all and we are here to rescue Blackbird, not kill people," his white-haired nakama told him calmly.

"Have I ruined your dream?" Luffy asked intently. He hadn't meant to. Fox never volunteered things and Luffy forgot he had to ask; her unflinching obedience was completely unlike the rest of the crew's attitudes and he sometimes overlooked the fact she had a past on the Grand Line.

"No; Fox' dream is to have strong nakama and Captain is doing very well," she told him with a smile. "If Fox needs a bounty to keep her nakama then Fox will have a bounty. Fox' other name will not have a bounty through, or Fox' family will get into trouble."

Luffy blinked before remembering she was related to the swordsman Zoro was trying to beat. Oh, and she had a mom in Sabaody she wanted to introduce to them. But still… "Your dream is to have strong nakama?"

"Yes;" Fox nodded, "nakama who won't let me go; nakama who are strong enough to look after themselves when I can't be there and can rescue me if I need it."

Luffy raised a fist. "I promise I'll get stronger than everyone! So if you need help I can save you!"

Fox tilted his hat up and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank-you."

* * *

Fox gets to play and we find out her dream!


	37. Hope

**Hope**

"Roooobiiiiiin! I've come for youuuuu!"

In the large meeting room in the Tower of Justice, Spandam froze mid-rant as Straw-Hat Luffy's voice cut through the clamour. Seated on the floor in chains next to the odd blue-haired cyborg who had attempted to help rescue her on the train, Robin's eyes widened.

"Luffy…" she whispered

"He's here," Franky said redundantly, grinning.

"Roooooobiiiiiiinnnnn!" Luffy's voice echoed between the buildings.

"Chief sir!" one of the marines by the widows said, "A guy with a straw hat is shouting on the roof of the courthouse! No doubt it's Straw-Hat Luffy, the leader of the crew! There's a woman in a cowboy hat with him!"

Spandam dashed to the window, ranting about Blueno and what the man thought he was doing. Robin turned to watch, not sure why her heart had both jumped and sank at the news. Luffy was here and Fox was with him; no doubt the rest of the crew were not far behind him. Spandam had already gloated that by following Robin, the crew had forfeited the free pass she had surrendered herself to get for them. She had never expected them to follow her this fiercely, nor get this far.

"Blueno! He lost to that brat!" Spandam was panicking, muttering to himself how Blueno losing shouldn't have been possible.

"WOOOOOOH!" Luffy's next shout startled the leader of CP9 and the disgusting man fell on his backside in shock.

"What should we do? Chief?" one of the marines asked as Spandam sat and trembled. The man pulled himself together at the request for orders and demanded all members of CP9 be summoned and ordered to annihilate Luffy and his crew. Robin hung her head; her actions had all been for nothing.

"Lift up your head, Nico Robin," came Franky's voice from her left. "They've come this far. Do you understand how completely this is?"

Robin said nothing.

"I understand you accepted the government's terms for the sake of your nakama, but the idiot chief broke the agreement. It's not like anybody will be saved if you surrender yourself. There's only one way to get out of here: respond to their rescue!" he encouraged her.

Robin resolutely kept her eyes on the floor. She didn't even want to think about facing Luffy right now; her mind was in turmoil and her masks and walls were shaking. For Fox to be here, out in the open… how much was she sacrificing? Why were the Straw-Hat crew giving up their dreams to chase after her?

"Are you afraid your nakama will die here?" Franky asked, frowning. "If you look away, they won't be able to rescue you!" He turned to glance around the room, taking in the chaos. "I'll force you to see Straw-Hat now," the cyborg muttered.

Robin would never, ever be able to tell anyonet what the crazy man with the metal nose did next; it was just too ridiculous. It did however result in her and Franky being fired through the window onto the balcony facing the Courthouse and being seen by Luffy, who was standing on top of one of the merlons, Fox in the crenel to his right.

"Heeey! Robiiin!" Luffy shouted, spotting her. "I'm glad you're still here!"

There was an explosion behind the archaeologist as Franky laid into their captors.

"Franky's there too, isn't he?" Luffy noticed. "Okay! Wait there!" he turned and ran across the roof. "It's kinda far but I'll try to jump over there!"

"Wait!" Robin shouted. She couldn't let this insanity continue, couldn't let Luffy risk himself. Not for her. She ground her teeth. "I told you several times I…" she paused so her voice wouldn't crack. "I'll never come back to you! Go away! I never want to see your faces again! Why'd you come to rescue me?! When did I ever ask you to do that!?" She took a deep breath. "I just want to die!"

Luffy stared as the remaining members of CP9 assembled on the parapet beside her.

"You want to die?!" he asked, shouting so his voice carried over the gaping void between them.

"That's right!" Robin shouted back.

"Robiiin! Is death what you want?!" Luffy demanded as the roof behind him exploded upwards. "Listen Robin, we've come all the way here, so we're gonna rescue you anyway! And if you still wanna die, then Fox can kill you afterwards!"

Beside him the black cowboy hat bobbed agreement as Nami, Chopper and Zoro emerged from the rubble. Another explosion at the other end of the roof revealed Sanji and Usopp, still in his Sogeking mask, flew through the air to land beside them. Robin stared.

"I beg of you Robin!" Luffy roared at her. "I don't care what you want, whether you chose to live or die, but whatever you choose, say it while you're with us!"

"That's right Robin-chan!" Sanji chipped in.

"Robin come baaack!" Chopper called out. Robin couldn't stop the tears welling up in her eyes as her crew lined up on the merlons, Fox hopping up to be on the same level as the rest.

"Now leave everything to us!" Luffy shouted.

Robin hesitated, at war within herself. Spandam took the opportunity to step out on the balcony and insult the Straw-Hats, ranting and boasting of the power at his back and call and showing them the Golden Den Den Mushi with which he could trigger a Buster Call. He then turned on her, gloating about the destruction of Ohara.

"Stop it!" Robin shouted at the horrible man, "Don't do that!" He had no idea… the terror and destruction and devastation. He was a child playing with high explosives and he gloated over her desperate response. "Do you even know what happens when you press it?!" she demanded.

His response indicated he didn't not really.

"You said Ohara disappeared from the map, didn't you?" she said, voice shaking as her memories rose up from the depths she had banished them to. "Can you see any humans on that map? You could only be so cruel because you look at the world like that!" she fell to her knees, swallowed by the past.

* * *

Fox was patient; it wasn't a natural trait but one she had learned in blood, tears and broken bones and it was all the dearer to her for it. She waited through Robin's emotional outburst and impassioned demand to live, Spandam's gloating and the partial lowering of the drawbridge to the Tower of Justice, until she heard the whistle of the train. She even waited through Luffy catching hold of her and dropping them onto the top of the runaway train and launching them through the wall, but when the large CP9 agent with the zipper across his mouth started yammering pointlessly at them, waving a key, Fox decided she had waited enough for one day.

"Don't rush! I never said this was the real –Urk!" He fell face down on the stone floor, Fox twisting the knife she had shoved through his liver as she moved behind him.

"Fox is tired of silly bleating," she growled, "and Fox wants to get Blackbird back. Is this the key?"

"Don't… know," her victim croaked as she stuck another knife in him. "Aah! Chapapapa! All the other agents in the tower… have a key, too! Aah!" Fox planted her heel firmly on a pressure point in his neck and the irritating blabbermouth passed out.

"Fox will follow Captain after Blackbird," she announced to her frozen audience as she retrieved his key, "since Captain wants to fight Kitten and Kitten is with Blackbird."

"Excluding Luffy and Fox, there are six of us," Sanji pointed out. "We can get the other four keys and meet with them after we have them."

"If Robin-kun enters the Gates, it's all over. Time is very important here," Usopp added.

"It's a waste of time to lose," Zoro said seriously, "so win, even if you die!" His impromptu speech got a cheer and the Straw-Hats plus Franky scattered, Fox right behind Luffy.

* * *

I fancied a bit of Robin, so here we have it.


	38. Rescue

**Rescue**

Luffy ran down the underground passage Chimney and her rabbit had showed him, Fox at his heels. The white-haired woman hadn't commented on his dashing around all over the place, though she had stopped him from trying to sail across the whirlpool-filled water separating the Tower of Justice from the Bridge of Hesitation. Instead she had kept up with him, always a pace behind, singing a little ditty under her breath. Luffy had picked up something about the ankle bone being connected to the leg bone and lost interest, though the tune was fairly catchy. He'd heard her singing about blood, the Grand Line and the Yonko earlier and he intended to have her sing him the whole thing later. He hadn't known she could sing; she'd never said she was a musician.

"Rooobin!" he shouted as he dashed down the corridor. "Robiiin!"

Behind him Fox broke of her singing to chuckle. "Blackbird heard you," she told him. Encouraged, Luffy picked up speed and came to a door blocking the passage.

"Doors? It doesn't look like steel this time," he noticed. Without breaking stride he kicked them hard, smashing them open and across the open space that opened up behind them. Blinking, Luffy looked around. "Where am I?"

"Welcome."

Luffy looked at the speaker and pointed an accusing finger. "Ah! Pigeon Guy!" He was about to attack when a Den Den Mushi rang and Fox placed a warning hand on his shoulder.

"It might be important," she advised him as the Pigeon Guy produced a baby snail and it started talking.

It didn't sound all that important until Luffy recognised Robin's voice. The following conversation went mostly over Luffy's head, but he knew Fox was listening carefully and trusted her to tell him if he needed to act on any of it. "Where was Robin speaking from?!" he demanded as soon as the transmission finished.

"… Behind this door," Pigeon Guy told him. Luffy charged, but was rebuffed. "'I can't let you pass'. At least let me say it," the man added as he parried Luffy's punches. The fight lasted a few more seconds until one of the rubberman's punches connected with one of the Pigeon Guy's and both were blasted back in opposite directions.

"Back off," Luffy said, climbing out of the wreckage, "Robin's behind that door, right?"

"She's there all right, but you'll never see her again," Pigeon Guy taunted.

"Captain?" both men turned as Fox dropped down to land next to Luffy. "Fox will take your hat," she said, lifting it from around his neck, "and find Blackbird. When you have beaten Kitten you can catch up and get your hat from Blackbird."

Luffy nodded; Fox was fast enough to get past Pigeon Guy and strong enough to look after Robin. "Go," he told her, charging his opponent.

Fox vanished, Pigeon Guy tried to move in front of the door but Luffy got to him first and slammed him head-first through the floor. The door disintegrated and Luffy saw his 'master of disguise' wave the straw hat cheerily at Pigeon Guy as he rose from the rubble.

"Bye-bye Kitten; don't lose too badly!" she cooed, raising a glowing hand. Pigeon Guy ran towards her again but the destroyed door reassembled itself in an instant, blocking the way, and Luffy attacked the agent once more. He had to win! His nakama were counting on him!

* * *

Robin had tried to escape Spandam; having realised she really didn't want to die encouraged her to do everything she could but the cowardly man had sicced his elephant-sword on her then beaten her up. She couldn't fight back very well with Kairoseki cuffs on her wrists and he had resorted to dragging her up the stairs by her hair. She was still resisting as much as she could when a familiar straw hat floated down from the ceiling to land in her lap.

"Whu-" Spandam was cut off by a flying kick that caught him under the chin and hammered him into the central pillar of the spiral stair. Robin crashed sideways, staring first at the hat in her lap, then up at Fox, who was pulling on a pair of studded leather gloves.

"Fox likes weapons best," she said conversationally, "but when dealing with Scum, all one needs are good gloves and elbow grease!" she threw herself at the head of CP9, ripped his sword away and laid into the wailing man with vigour. A few highly enjoyable –for Robin– minutes later Spandam had passed out under the onslaught and stopped whimpering, so Fox got off him and hurried over to the archaeologist.

"Fox has no keys," she confessed, digging in a pocket, "but Fox has lock picks. Sit still, Blackbird." The assassin knelt behind Robin and set about fiddling with the cuffs.

"How are you even touching them?" Robin asked. Fox was a Devil Fruit User.

"Gloves are good for lots of things," Fox said absently as the cuffs clicked open. "Here," she handed Robin Spandam's Devil Fruit Sword. "Fox will carry the Scum; the only way out is forwards."

"Why are you bringing him?" Robin asked, accepting both the blade and the sheath Fox had removed from her former captor's person.

"Fox might want to kill him later," the slightly taller woman said honestly, "or Fox might want to see how many more bones she can break before it happens naturally. Fox has not decided."

Robin couldn't actually find fault in her crewmate's scheme, so the two women continued up the steps towards the bridge of Hesitation, Luffy's straw hat perched jauntily on the archaeologist's head. Robin smiled; she was happy.

* * *

Fox walked calmly along the bridge of Hesitation, Robin beside her wearing Luffy's hat and tears streaming down her face. Fox would have been worried were it not for the ridiculously wide smile plastered across the archaeologist's face and the fact that she was chuckling 'shishishi' under her breath as she staggered along beside the assassin. Fox knew that the boat at the other end of the bridge would be full of Marines, but wasn't too bothered. One problem at a time.

As they neared the end of the bridge Fox swung the still unconscious body of Spandam onto the ground and loosened her swords in their sheaths. "Seagulls will see us soon," she commented, "if they haven't noticed already that something is wrong." Robin nodded, touching the hat on her head before settling into one of her preferred stances.

The two women waited, Fox listening to the sound of orders wafting up from down below as the marines prepared to head onto the bridge to find out what had happened to Spandam.

"Hey!" Fox did not look back, but Robin did.

"Franky?" she muttered, just as the Marines stormed the archway.

Fox could not use her Devil Fruit powers in this crush; Robin would be using her Ability as well and there was no guarantee that Fox wouldn't graze one of her detached limbs. So instead the woman in the black hat limited herself to pure swordplay, singing the song she's been thinking about since entering the Tower of Justice:

"Dem bones dem bones dem live bones,

"Dem bones dem bones dem live bones,

"Dem bones dem bones dem live bones,

"Now come apart by ma sword!"

"Your toe bone connected to your foot bone,

"Your foot bone connected to your leg bone,

"Your leg bone connected to your knee bone,

"Your knee bone connected to your thigh bone,

"Your thigh bone connected to you hip bone,

"Your hip bone connected to your back bone-" fiery explosions rained down on the marines around her, driving them back down the steps towards her ship.

"What was that?" shouted a Marine officer.

"We cannot identify the shooter!" Another Marine shouted.

"There!" cried a third Marine, miraculously unscathed and holding a pair of binoculars, pointing up at the top of the now very wobbly Tower of Justice.

"I've come with the keys!" Franky shouted as he drew level with the women. Then he noticed Robin's hands were free. "Wait… did your key work?"

"Fox had lock picks," Fox said simply, not taking her eyes from the now decimated Marine force.

"What?! You mean we could have not bothered!" Franky roared. Fox raised an eyebrow at him.

"Silly killer-people needed beating and the crew needed to take out their frustrations on somebody. Fox made sure Blackbird was safe; what else matters?"

Franky produced a baby Den Den Mushi. "Guys!" he said into it, "Fox had lock picks!"

"**WHAAT?!**" came the outraged chorus of replies. Fox giggled.

"Did you win?" she asked the snail.

"Well yes, but-"

"Blackbird is safe and the enemy is defeated," Fox overrode them implacably. "Come and catch up so we can leave."

**Badooom!**

The part of the iron fence surrounding the island in front of the now wide open Gates of Justice exploded. Fox glanced past her opponents to see warships approaching in the distance. "Fox hopes they hurry up," she said aloud.

"So do I," Robin agreed, fingering her borrowed hat.


	39. Struggle

**Struggle**

The first thing Zoro saw on waking after almost drowning in the tunnel leading to the Bridge of Hesitation was Fox leaning over him, one hand flat over his heart and the other pressed to his forehead. Neither hand was glowing, but the swordsman still felt a sudden rush of energy. Fox then moved on to Sanji, who was blathering about how their rescuer could not possibly be a mermaid. That the chef failed to notice the assassin unbuttoning the top of his shirt so she could place a hand directly over his heart gave Zoro a good idea of how distracted dartboard-brow was by the revelation that the ugly, drunken Kokoro was half fish. The swordsman was revolted, but he'd also seen Fox' photo collection and knew this, this _female_ was an aberration he could safely purge from his mind.

After checking on Sanji Fox ignored Usopp completely and attended to Nami before making a beeline for Chopper, carefully cradling the reindeer in her arms and lifting him into her lap.

"Poor little Origami, all pulled out of shape. Origami needs to take more care in how he folds himself," she said sadly, hands running over Chopper's face and torso. Zoro noticed that the sniper in his carnival mask was completely devastated at being overlooked. The idiot should have thought things through before insulting her like he had; Fox was nowhere near as soft as her easygoing façade lured people into believing.

"Kokoro-san, thank-you very much," Nami said to the train conductor as Sanji lunged towards Robin, only to hit the mast as Chopper and Nami got there first. Fox slunk back to lean against Zoro, her arms around his chest as her forehead pressed against the top of his head.

"Fox has killed a lot of people today," she said sadly, "lots of sons, brothers, fathers and friends. Fox would do it again for her nakama, but not for anyone else." She sighed. "Fox enjoys killing very much, but Fox does not like tearing apart people's families. Everyone should have someone who cares."

Zoro hugged Fox, then took her by the hand and led her back up the steps to the bridge so he could see what was going on. There wasn't much he could say in response to her observation on the consequences of killing, so all he could do was be there for her. Usopp and Franky followed them up to talk to the swordsman about what was happening both on Enies Lobby and with Luffy, but Zoro told them to wait rather than interfere with the captain's fight. Fox just went on ignoring both men as if they weren't there, swinging the hand clasped in Zoro's back and forth while humming a tune the swordsman thought he recognised from some bar somewhere.

When the broadcast was made regarding the deaths of the other 'pirates' –the Franky Family and gallery-La shipwrights who had come with them– Zoro bowed his head but noticed that Fox seemed oblivious; it was possible then they weren't as dead as they seemed. He didn't say a word though, so as not to arouse false hope.

"Fox?" he asked, a thought having occurred to him.

"Fox hears you," she acknowledged.

"Could you have killed Rob Lucci?" Both Franky and Usopp stiffened as he spoke the words, turning to look at the two of them.

"Fox could have," she admitted candidly, "But Captain wished to and Captain promised to win, so Fox went ahead to save Blackbird."

"You could go help," Usopp suggested. Fox ignored the sniper completely.

"Why don't you help?" Franky asked. Fox glanced at him.

"Captain promised he would win," she repeated flatly. Only Zoro heard the quiet murmur that followed that closing statement:

"Fox does not want to have to rescue Captain; Captain should not need Fox to look after him."

Zoro agreed with that statement and knew that if it came to it Fox _would _save Luffy, though her doing so would probably destroy the crew for good. The captain was supposed to be the strongest person on the ship, or failing that the one who made the best decisions. For Fox to have to rescue Luffy would prove that Luffy was both weaker than her and not capable of making good decisions. The swordsman really hoped it wouldn't come to that.

As the first half of the bridge crumpled, Fox stepped away from Zoro, adjusting her hat.

"They come," she breathed, hands reaching for the hilts of her swords. Zoro stiffened, hands reaching for his own blades as another announcement was made over the Den Den Mushi.

* * *

As the Captains and Lieutenant Commanders flooded the isolated bit of bridge she and the others were trapped on, Fox flipped her swords into reverse grips to reduce her range, let her Devil Fruit Power coat them again so that death came to everything she touched and started to sing once more. Most of the songs she knew were drinking songs, or songs that got sung once everyone was drunk enough not to care too much about dignity. Which was why she knew forty-three verses of this particular ditty, most of which had been made up on the spot:

"What shall we do with a drunken pirate?

"What shall we do with a drunken pirate?

"What shall we do with a drunken pirate,

"Early in the morning!"

She cut through the Marines mobbing her with ease and they fell around her like chaff, piling up on the bridge and making the footing uncertain. Fox took to kicking fallen bodies at the people attacking her to increase her mobility and ensure she wasn't wandering too closely her comrades. She was barely relying on her eyes now, using them only to keep track of her enemies' weapons, monitoring the ebb and flow of bodies around her with her Devil Fruit Ability and Haki. A good half of the corpses on the bridge were her doing, as she was the only person killing indiscriminately rather than maiming, injuring or incapacitating.

She was barely paying attention to her ears at all until the Den Den Mushi announcement pierced the haze of battle, shouting for all to hear that Luffy had beaten Rob Lucci. She ignored the following unofficial announcement, one from the Franky family and the Gallery-La shipwrights who had managed to survive the Buster Call somehow, instead taking advantage of the slight lull to dart closer to her crew and take out the sneakier Marines who had the smarts to attack her nakama while they were distracted.

Fox was monitoring her Captain's health despite the chaos; she wasn't surprised when he shouted that he couldn't move at all. She was clearing a run-up so she could fetch him when the ship behind them was blown to smithereens, ruining that getaway plan. The assassin was perfectly ready to board one of the warships and empty it of Marines for the crew to sail off in, but they had backed off as the last of the assault force landed on the prop; Fox guessed the Marines intended to just blow them up from a safe distance. She was about to board anyway when a familiar presence tickled her senses and Fox laughed like a lunatic. Shaking the blood from her blades, she sheathed them and started a new song, pitching it just right to cut through the sounds of battle:

"Sing ho for a brave and gallant ship,

"And a fast and favouring breeze,

"With a bully crew and a captain too

"To carry me over the seas

"To carry me over the seas me boys

"To my true love far away

"For I'm taking a trip on a pirate ship

"Ten thousand miles away!"

Fox ignored the panic of her crew and the guns of the warships aimed at her captain, wild and giddy glee buoying her up and overflowing over like fine sake; right now she was untouchable in her triumph, dancing out of reach of her enemies' blades and laying them low with the slightest touch.

"Then blow, ye winds and blow and a roving I will go

"I'll stay no more on an Island's shore

"To hear sweet music play

"For I'm on the move to me own true love

"Ten thousand miles away!"

With that she launched herself over the edge of the prop into the sea, laughing like a maniac. Today was a good day: the Going Merry lived!


	40. Goodbye

**Goodbye**

Luffy was utterly amazed and delighted by Going Merry's rescue of him and his nakama from Enies Lobby, for all he couldn't see Usopp anywhere despite it being his ship now. He was utterly exhausted though, though Fox' hugging him in delight had healed him enough to move just a little. He had been given his hat back by Robin and was sitting on Chopper's shoulders enjoying the sway of the Merry as a Gallery-La ship approached from the direction of Water Seven.

Then Merry's prow came loose, the whole foredeck canting forwards into the sea.

"Hey, what's going on all of a sudden?!" Luffy demanded to know.

"This is not 'all of a sudden', this is expected!" Sanji said with a scowl. "They did say Merry cannot go any further. You haven't forgotten about that, have you?"

Luffy immediately turned to Iceberg on the Gallery-La ship and begged him to do something for Merry; she had just saved them! But the bandaged man just looked down at him with an odd expression and said:

"Then let her sleep already! We've done all we possibly can." The mayor of Water Seven smiled. "I'm seeing a miracle right now, a miracle from a ship that reached its limit long ago. I've been a shipwright for many, many years yet I've never seen such an amazing pirate ship. It lived a very admirable life."

Luffy bowed his head for a moment before glancing back at Fox, who was leaning against the mast with the kind of silly smile on her face he had only ever seen before on mothers fussing over their babies. In spite of that however there were tears were trickling down from behind her glasses. Luffy closed his eyes; Merry was done and it was time to let her rest.

* * *

Fox set aside her glasses and bandannas for Merry's funeral, though she kept Ace' hat clutched to her chest as her hair drifted freely in the wind. She stood between Nami and Zoro on the longboat from the Gallery-La ship while Luffy was in a little rowboat with a burning brand to set to rest the little ship that had carried them all so far. Fox knew this was going to hurt; she would probably be completely useless tomorrow. But Merry deserved a good send-off and Fox had poured enough of herself into the willing caravel for it to be almost sentient, so the white-haired woman could not let herself miss this last goodbye.

"Thank-you for carrying us all this time, Merry," Luffy said as the flames licked up the side of the ship and reached the rigging. Fox swayed like a drunk as fire consumed the going Merry and it started to sink lower in the water; she felt like an over-tightened musical instrument, one with strings so tight it was only a matter of time until they–

_I'm sorry._

–snapped.

None of the Straw-Hats noticed the quiet thud as Fox passed out in the bottom of the longboat, their attention caught by Merry's last goodbye. Only afterwards, when the dying ship had vanished completely under water, did Zoro notice what had happened and cause a minor commotion when she didn't respond at all to him. It took Chopper a long time to get through to the swordsman that Fox was just overstressed and would be fine in a day or two.

* * *

Zoro had shocked the rest of the crew –and pretty much everyone else– by crawling into bed with an unconscious Fox as soon as they returned from Enies Lobby and refusing to let go of her until she woke up again; Fox shocked them all over again by dragging the swordsman into the bathroom with her upon waking and locking them both in together. Nami had tried to tell Fox that you weren't supposed to behave like that but the white-haired woman had told the navigator to mind her own business. Sanji just shook his head at her poor taste in men and made her more food; Fox had known she liked him for a reason. Luffy, being dead to the world still, had said nothing, but Robin seemed amused and Chopper just accepted it.

After waking up Fox made herself scarce for a little while, tracking down Swift Hunter for a change of clothes and finishing off the letters that had been put on hold due to events unravelling. She then returned to the temporary housing the Gallery-La people had built them and lurked quietly, not wanting to be sociable right now. She had to sort through the people she had killed and make a suitable memorial to them, be it a something grand or just a token, to put them to rest. Sanji and Nami sensed her reticence and let her be, other than the chef making a point of putting more food in front of her whenever she emptied a plate of snacks. Zoro was also quiet, having lost Yubashiri to a Devil Fruit User who had rusted the blade away almost completely.

When Fox stripped to her underwear and crawled into bed with Zoro again on the second night after the battle the rest of the crew gave up protesting as a lost cause and did their best to adjust; Nami seemed to be having the most difficulty. It was not a surprise really then when, on the third morning after the battle, the navigator was the one to break down and start asking questions.

"How old are you, Fox?" the redhead inquired over breakfast. Fox glanced up from her meal:

"Twenty-one."

There was a collective double-take.

"You're two years older than me," Zoro noted mildly. "You don't look it."

Fox shrugged. "I've been more or less on my own on the Grand Line since I was fifteen; my age isn't really all that relevant to me anymore."

"So, why Zoro?" Nami persisted. Fox frowned.

"What's wrong with him?"

"Nothing!" the navigator backtracked, waving her hands. "I just want to know what you see."

Fox glanced sideways at the green-haired swordsman, who was now acting like he had gone deaf and had no idea what was being discussed.

"You mean other than the gorgeous looks and killer physique, right?" she said wickedly.

Said swordsman quickly hid his face behind a fresh plate of food as everyone else at the table choked.

"Y-yeah, other than that," Nami agreed weakly, staring at Zoro like she'd never seen him before; Sanji buried his face in his hands and whined about the injustice of the marino catching himself a besotted mermaid.

Fox tapped her fork thoughtfully against her lips. "He's completely trustworthy, a truly talented swordsman, very level-headed, a born killer, utterly dedicated to his goals while refusing to compromise his morals, kind, perceptive and has a fun sense of humour. Does that cover enough ground for you?"

Zoro was still acting like he was stone deaf and the rest of the table was staring at them both.

"Him being a born killer is a good thing?" Robin inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, we match," Fox pointed out with a wry smile, "and it keeps me from worrying about him as I know he's not just going to roll over and let someone kill him."

"Marimo has a sense of humour?" Sanji muttered. "Where does he keep it?"

"Dumbass cook," Zoro muttered darkly, leaning over to kiss Fox on the cheek before getting up from the table and leaving the room.

"Why does his being a swordsman matter to you?" Robin asked, picking up the interrogation again.

Fox smirked. "I've learnt over the years that I am a total sucker for brilliant swordsmen and Ds. Practically nobody else ever makes the cut; a product of my upbringing I suppose."

There was a pause, until Sanji asked:

"Who raised you?"

Fox eyed him over her drink. "Both my parents for the first four years of my life. After that my mother and her friends, though my father visited me regularly, as did those of his acquaintances he trusted enough to introduce me to." She paused. "I met more pirates through my mother than through my father; she runs a very good teahouse."

"Is that where you learnt those songs?" Nami asked.

Fox' lips twitched. "Ah, the songs. My father was very strict about not exposing me to, hm, anything _inappropriate_ for a little girl, but found it a rather limiting repertoire for entertaining an energetic child while at sea so he acquired a lot of rather original material over the years. I know a lot of love songs, drinking songs, sea shanties and such but very few nursery rhymes as neither of my parents were really the nursery rhyme sort of person." She grinned. "Of course living as I did I couldn't avoid hearing a bit of inappropriate stuff, but I didn't understand most of it until I was old enough to get the jokes."

Robin smiled, possibly at the mental picture the white-haired woman's words had painted.

"How strong are you?" Chopper asked. Fox glanced around the table.

"Strong enough to kill everyone in this room without breaking a sweat," she said frankly; "A number of powerful captains have asked me to join their crews in the past. I can take care of myself well enough."

There was a silence as the rest of the Straw-Hats let her statement settle a bit. "So why did you join Luffy?" Robin asked.

Fox smiled sweetly. "Like I told Ace, Luffy is going places and I want to be there. Besides, the captain's a D and I have a soft spot for Ds. The way they twist reality around themselves completely fascinates me."

"Twist reality?" Nami repeated, confused. "D? Is this about the weird initial Luffy has that Ace had too?"

Fox chuckled. "You'll learn. Where the Will of D is concerned you've either got to go big or go home." With that she got up and wandered outside, leaving the other four conscious Straw-Hats to their thoughts.

* * *

A little more is shared.


	41. Lull

**Lull**

Fox was busy engaging in business deals under her true name when she detected Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp's arrival on the island, so she was not able to get to the temporary Gallery-La headquarters before he did. In fact, she arrived just as Garp was ordering his men to fix a hole in the wall of the building that was suspiciously vice-admiral-shaped. She interrupted his men's haranguing him about making the hole in the first place and greeted him:

"Vice Admiral! I wasn't expecting to see you here at all!"

Everyone turned and Garp grinned massively at her. "Lisska! Dear girl it has been far too long since you've visited me in Marineford. What have you been getting up to, hm?"

Fox serenely ignored her captain and crew's stunned silence. "I've been exploring, of course! I have new charts and a few interesting Eternal Poses, should Headquarters be prepared to part with the money of course. I already have a private buyer offering me eight hundred million for one of them."

"Feh! Not the boring stuff, Lisska! I'm asking whether you've done anything interesting!" the massive and jovial officer demanded.

"Well I've bumped into both your grandsons," Fox said slyly, "Ace made a point of dining on my budget for half a week; he hasn't forgotten his manners though so at least he was polite about it. He seems to be doing just fine. Luffy… well I see you've caught up already." She paused, taking in the bruise on her captain's head from the infamous 'Fist of Love'. "I've also finally managed to visit Little Garden: did you know there really are dinosaurs there?"

Garp chuckled. "I'll have to swing by sometime."

"Well, other than that it's been fairly dull," Fox said calmly, ignoring Sanji and Nami who were gaping at her. "Apart from getting caught up in the tail-end of the Alabasta mess. Oh, and Admiral Aokiji destroyed that nice umbrella Tsuru bought me, so he owes me a new one."

Garp roared with laughter, dragging her into a crushing hug. "Wonderful! If only you could join the Marines! You'd make a wonderful officer!"

Fox hugged the massive man back before extricating herself. "Well sadly my history makes it impossible so the point is moot," she said diplomatically. Have you been well?"

"Very well! I have two apprentices now and they are shaping up nicely!" Garp told her cheerfully. "Boys! Get over here!" he bellowed over his shoulder. A pink-haired boy with a bandanna around his head and a blond in thin sunglasses hurried over from where they had been watching the conversation alongside the Straw-Hats. "Boys, this is Dracule Lisska. Lisska, this are Coby," he cuffed the pink-haired boy, "and Helmeppo," He wacked the blond. "They're going to be fine Marines by the time I'm finished with them!"

"I'm sure they will, providing they survive that long," Fox said with a gentle smile to both stunned young men, who had clearly connected the dots and worked out who exactly she was related to. "Have you seen my father lately?"

"Meh," Garp grumbled. "He was in Headquarters a few weeks ago; I don't know why and I don't much care."

Fox sighed prettily. "He could be anywhere now. Oh well, so much for that. Maybe I'll catch him in Sabaody."

"Give your mother my best, will you?" Garp asked gruffly. "It's been a while since I've been able to visit her teahouse." He sighed. "I've never been able to find anywhere that sells donuts as good as the ones she makes."

"I'll see if I can have her send you a bento," Fox promised, greatly amused.

"Well, I suppose I'd better get on with fixing that wall," the Vice-Admiral grumbled. "Oh well." He walked over to the pile of lumber and box of nails his men had found. Fox wandered after him into the building, ostensibly to watch. She looked nothing like her pirate self today, wearing a swishy pink and orange sundress with her hair in two loose buns on either side of her head.

"Hallo Lisska!" Luffy said brightly, waving. "Where were you earlier?"

"I've been getting my work evaluated and registered," Fox said easily, not taking her eyes off Garp's repair attempts. "I made a few Eternal Poses for Skypeia and people are offering me silly money for them."

"Really eight hundred million?" Sanji asked quietly.

"Oh yes; there _aren't_ any other Eternal Poses for there, you know," she pointed out, "and unlike Little Garden it's quite heavily populated with excellent trade opportunities. Anyone with an Eternal Pose could corner the market on Dials very easily and make an absolute mint." She grinned. "I'm thinking of charging a percentage on top of the usual purchase fee."

"I thought the witch was the money-obsessed one," Zoro muttered quietly.

Fox smiled. "That Pose I made is priceless, literally. It is so difficult to get up there that no other Pose Artificer had ever attempted it. I made it thanks to you guys, so I think a long-term source of income would be handy; think of it as a nest-egg against future disasters."

Zoro paused. "You want the money for us?"

"The way Luffy eats we'll need it," Sanji muttered.

"By the way, Luffy," Garp said, turning to look at his grandson. "I heard you met your dad."

Fox missed the next little bit of conversation due to Zoro asking her exactly how much money she was angling for from the buyer she had lined up. She did not however miss Garp's reply to whatever Luffy had said:

"Oh what, he didn't introduce himself? I heard he saw you off at Logue Town!"

"Luffy's dad was in Logue Town?" Sanji repeated, puzzled.

"I wonder what Luffy's father is like," Nami mused, not having heard Fox' quiet conversation with Zoro and Sanji about money.

"Your father's name is Monkey D. Dragon, the revolutionary," Garp told Luffy, his not-at-all quiet revelation stunning almost everyone in range. Fox kept her peace through the panic and disorder, leaning against Zoro's shoulder and humming a cheery tune. She'd met the Revolutionary Dragon a few times over the years and liked the man, though she was wary of his ideals.

"You knew?" Zoro murmured.

"Met him," Fox said succinctly. "Interesting man. Kick-ass fighter, too."

Zoro glanced sideways at her, raising an eyebrow. "You've fought him?"

"Sparred," Fox corrected. "He's very, very good." She smirked. "He pays well too."

Zoro caught the allusion to her fox-masked alter ego and frowned thoughtfully. "He knows?"

"Nope." Phantom Fox' work for the revolution had been paid entirely through intermediaries.

Zoro nodded, watching the chaos die down. Fox took the opportunity to corner Garp's right-hand man to give him the details of the Eternal Poses to share with Headquarters and suggested that Dr. Vegapunk might be able to find a reliable way of getting ships up to explore the Millennium Cumulonimbus and properly map the islands and populations in them. Marineford already had her Den Den Mushi frequency –something she only used for legal business– so could contact her at their leisure. She knew the World Government would not stand for an entire population living beyond the reach of its rule –or more accurately beyond the reach of its tax scheme– so there was no doubt in her mind that she would get the money she wanted from them.

She had three such poses: one would of course go to the Government, one to the merchant who wanted to trade in Dials who was wealthy enough to meet her price and scrupulous enough for her to consider his offer and the last one she would keep. She never sold an Eternal Pose she didn't have a spare of; it just wasn't the thing to do. Once the Marines found a way to get up to Skypeia they would take a Pose Artificer with them to make a few more, so it wasn't like she was seriously limiting access; she just wanted to give the locals a chance to get themselves back on their feet before the Marines visited.

Garp left after fixing the wall, leaving Coby and Helmeppo behind to chat with Luffy, who apparently knew the pink-haired Marine from before he enlisted. Fox went to change back into her pirate gear and climb the wall surrounding the Gallery-La outdoor swimming pool; she had a feeling in her bones things were going to hot up and wanted to be prepared.

* * *

The Shichibukai's daughter gets some more screen time.


	42. Ripples

**Ripples **

Due to her position seated on the top of the wall surrounding the pool area, Fox was the only person to notice Admiral Aokiji's arrival. However since he had made good on his promise to buy her a beautiful new umbrella from San Faldo –he even bought one with a shikomi-zue handle and integrated blade– she let him have his conversation with Robin in private. He also complemented her on keeping 'Dracule Lisska' out of trouble; Kuzan was much more disillusioned about the government's so-called justice than either of his fellow admirals. Fox suspected his real reason for turning a blind eye had something to do with his odd attachment to Nico Robin, but to verify that she would have had to eavesdrop and that would have been rude.

* * *

Fox was also the only person to notice the arrival of Captain Attach of the Marine Photography Department the next morning; she ambushed him in the shrubbery.

"Fox thought she spotted a Seagull," she said with a smirk half-hidden behind her bandanna, one hand firmly gripping the unfortunate man's neck right over his pulse. "Why is Stalker here?" She removed the camera from his nerveless fingers. "Wait, Fox knows why. But Fox thought Stalker had taken enough pictures at Enies Lobby."

The Marine swallowed hard. "I'm two short," he admitted.

"Oh? Well, bounties are important to pirates too, so Fox will have to let you go." The woman pouted, adjusting her hat. "Captain would be disappointed otherwise. Captain doesn't like it when Fox kills people for things they haven't done yet." She did not however let him go just yet. "What is Fox accused of? Other than the murder of two thousand, six hundred and twenty three Marines at Enies Lobby."

"N-n-nothing," the Marine admitted. "Y-you've never been sighted before."

Fox struck little pose. "Fox has skill. Fox was on the Grand Line for three years before meeting her captain, but Fox was alone so Fox had to look after herself. Now Fox has a captain and crew Fox can afford not to kill all the witnesses."

Her captive's eyes widened. "Are you confessing?"

Fox frowned. "Bounties are important, so they should be accurate. Fox does not want to be misrepresented; Fox is a child of the Grand Line. Fox has no proof of past actions, so Stalker does not have to believe, but Fox can share if Stalker is interested."

The Marine produced a notebook and pen. Fox settled into a sitting position and let go of the man's neck. She would only confess to those incidents where she had used her Devil Fruit Ability to slaughter pirate crews or towns; no contracts or other business would be mentioned. This was part of building a persona: having a past.

"Fox was in Toroa twenty-six months ago," she started, knowing full well the marine would be able to connect her presence with the destruction of two whole towns and a slaving ring there. "Fox also met the Skinner Pirates on their way out of Mock Town four months later. Then she met the Ladykiller Pirates when they were visiting Pucci for the Valentines Festival last year;" she paused, "Fox made a mess that time." She shook her head. "Fox encountered the Thalassa Lucas on his way to Sabaody eight months ago with his entourage, while hunting Viri the Impaler. It was coincidence, but Fox believes it is better to be thorough than dead." It hadn't been a coincidence: King Lucas had been engaged in very shady dealings of a kind Fox objected to; Viri on the other hand _had_ been a very happy accident.

Captain Attach was sweating slightly but he had taken careful notes.

"Fox wished to add that she hopes the hotelier in Pucci managed to remove the stain from the bathhouse ceiling, that the Governor of Toroa should not have been selling the children of the Gurando tribe to slavers, that both pirate crews had it coming to them and that she sent Lucas' heir a card expressing her condolences," Fox finished, "though of course Fox did not sign it: Fox is not stupid. The card had mermaids on." That should be proof enough for the Marines to cross-reference. "Now Stalker can go and take his pictures, but no coming back later, hm?"

The photographer nodded frantically, grabbed his camera and scuttled out of the shrubbery. Fox grinned and climbed back up onto the wall. Now she would have a proper bounty poster with actual crimes she had committed on it.

* * *

After ensuring that Captain Attach really had left Water Seven, Fox spent another day wandering around the town and finishing up her business deals. The World Government had come through with her 800 million, most of which she converted to gold and put into Swift Hunter's lower hold to use as ballast. She presented ten million to Nami, so the navigator could buy nice furniture for the ship Franky was building for them. She then abducted Zoro for a the rest of the day to make good on their mutual promises made on the way to the Sea Train: they spent the night in Swift Hunter and had a great deal of fun getting to know each-other better. Fox also promised to lend him money for a sword if he could find a really good one; when the island's shops failed to produce anything as fine as what he had just lost she let him handle Zanchou in her ship's dojo to cheer him up.

What she didn't tell the Straw-Hats was that, while visiting St. Poplar for a day, she had spotted the CP9 agents performing in the street for money. The reason she kept quiet about it was that the encounter had been a touch embarrassing for her: she had spotted the giraffe and dashed over to cuddle it before registering that it was actually Kaku in Zoan form. He had been cautiously amused, and at the end of the day had accepted a wad of money from her towards Lucci and Fukuro's hospital bills. He had also accepted a flying fish letter case –a small, portable version of her Sea King ship that could deliver itself between pre-arranged recipients– so the now rogue agents could buy information from the Grand Line's extensive Black Market.

Fox did not tell him she was the maker of said letter cases; she did not need that particular target on her back any time soon. As far as anybody knew, her ship had been bought at very high cost through intermediaries. Nor did she mention that her mother and 'aunts' had cornered the market on information about a decade ago and ran it jointly out of a pair of teahouses on Sabaody and a café on Fishman Island. That kind of information did not need to be shared.

The other thing Fox did was hunt down Franky. She recognised that he wanted to keep the ship a secret, but there were a few things she had to make sure he understood before he finished it.

* * *

Fox cornered Franky down at the edge of Shipwreck Island.

"Fox needs to talk to Star before ship is finished," she explained, making a point to sit with her back to the partly-built vessel, "because Fox had things to explain which affect the ship. Fox hopes Star is willing to listen."

Franky sat down on a rock opposite her. "Go ahead, Cowgirl," he told her, face serious.

Fox frowned; this wasn't easy. "Fox… Fox was sharing a dorm with eleven other girls at the time she was force-fed Devil Fruit," she began, voice soft; this was one of her worst memories. "As Star saw, Fox' Devil Fruit lets her kill with a touch. Fox had terrible nightmares after eating it as Fox' mother is a mermaid and Fox knew she had lost the sea forever. But when Fox' dorm-mates tried to wake her they died when they touched her. When someone finally threw a bucket of water over Fox there were only four other girls in the room that were still alive." Fox paused. "Fox was moved to a private room after that. Fox cannot share a room with other women, because Fox always gets nightmares again. Fox has tried. Fox can share a bed with others, but cannot share a room unless she is also sharing a bed, and Fox can only sleep safely with certain people she trusts. Fox cannot share with Blackbird and Cloud. Fox could share with Greenie, but that is at Captain's discretion as it is Captain's ship. So Fox needs a private room. Fox would also like a work room to do things in, but Fox can manage without if Star can only squeeze one room in." She waited.

Franky sniffed, then sobbed, tears pouring down his cheeks. "Dat's so sad!" he wailed, before wiping his eyes on his sleeve. "I'll make sure you have your own room, Cowgirl, and fitting in a little workshop won't be any trouble. Is there any particular kind of bed you'd like?"

"A double bed, if Fox can," Fox requested candidly. "Fox is very grateful." She bowed.

Franky reached over and patted her shoulder. "You're a good kid, Cowgirl," he told her seriously. "Don't let your past weigh you down."

Fox smiled a small smile. "Fox does her best, but some things linger," she replied equally seriously. "Fox will see you when Ship is finished." She left at a run, wanting to distract herself from the horrors revisiting that memory had stirred up. Hopefully Zoro would be willing to distract her.

* * *

Fox does not just lie around doing nothing while waiting for the Log Pose to reset and for Franky to build them a ship.


	43. Reactions

**Reactions**

Ace chuckled as he read the article in the newspaper about what his little brother had been up to lately. Attacking Enies Lobby and burning it to the ground? He chuckled again. No doubt Fox had been there too; she wasn't the sort to let her captain go running off without her. Since it was a really big thing he would likely be seeing a bounty poster with her face on it soon; he hoped she didn't get in too much trouble with her dad over that. The one time he'd met Mihawk the Shichibukai had made it abundantly clear that while he was prepared to turn a blind eye to Fox' activities, he would not be able to shield her from the World Government if she got a bounty. Considering she'd been at large on the Grand Line for the past six years, Ace was impressed that no-one had caught her yet; she certainly wasn't all that bothered about the law and had done a whole lot of highly illegal things over the years.

Putting the paper aside, he picked up the letter she'd sent him most recently and re-read it, smiling. Letters were a slow way to communicate, but it was more secure than Den Den Mushi and better than trying to meet face-to-face. Fox' little delivery critters did pretty well really; they weren't truly alive so they didn't need to eat or sleep and they seemed to have an Eternal Pose inside their heads that could always track down the recipient no matter how long it took.

Most of the delivery animals were fish or amphibians, but Ace had been given a sea iguana in deference of his Logia nature: Fox hadn't wanted to give him something he might dry out and damage by accident. The beast was as long as Ace was tall and could turn itself into a small chest that he put letters and the occasional gift in. Currently Beastie was on its way to Fox with a letter from Ace, or possibly on its way back if she'd already replied. Ace was actually glad Beastie wasn't here, as it stuck close whenever it was with him and he didn't want it to get caught up in the fight that was about to break out now he had found Teach on Banaro Island.

Leaving both letter and newspaper on his boat, Ace stepped onto dry land and set out after the pirate who had killed Thatch, considering as he did the merits of Fox' assertion that Teach's severed head would look good on his crewmate's grave. The more he thought about it the more agreeable the idea became…

Several hours later a medium-sized sea iguana scuttled through the burnt and crushed remnants at the centre of the island of Banaro and came to a stop by an abandoned orange cowboy hat with red beads. The iguana's head contorted into a vaguely box-like shape and it swallowed the hat whole before dashing back the way it had come.

* * *

Marco, the First Division Commander of Whitebeard's crew and de-facto first mate, lounged on the upper deck of the Moby Dick waiting for the newspaper. It was three days since the mess at Enies Lobby had been announced and Marco was looking forward to seeing the bounty posters that would inevitably arise from such an incident. He'd heard a lot about Luffy from Ace, seeing as Straw Hat was Fire Fist's little brother, and it was clear the younger boy was making an even bigger splash than the elder had.

When the news coo landed next to him the calm blond accepted the paper and handed over the money, then paused as nine bounty posters all tried to escape from him at once. A moment later the newspaper was folded beside him and Marco was flipping through the posters, taking note of the crimes each individual was being accused off and their bounties: 'Straw Hat' Luffy, 300 million; 'Devil's Child' Nico Robin 90 million; 'Pirate Hunter' Zoro 120 million; 'Cat Thief' Nami 16 million; 'Cyborg' Franky 44 million; 'Black Leg' Sanji 77 million; 'King of Sharpshooters' Sogeking 30 million; 'Cotton Candy Lover' Chopper fifty beli –a pet?– and the last poster, which Marco removed from the stack and lifted up to the light.

'Angel of Death' Fox, 220 million.

Both the picture and the name were familiar; Marco paused thoughtfully. The name, the name… ah yes, a pirate superstition: sometimes particularly violent and vicious pirate crews would be found dead on their ships or on isolated islands. Some of the crew would be cut into pieces while others were barely scratched or completely untouched. It was a mystery that led pirates to murmur that the dead crew's actions had caught the attention of the Angel of Death, who had come for them and left no man behind to tell the tale. The name was also connected to the massacre of a few towns here and there and one small Marine base. If the Marines had finally managed to connect those crimes to a face, no wonder the starting bounty was so high. But why did he recognise that face?

Marco studied it for a moment. That nose… the cheekbones and eyebrows… that was Fox, _his_ Fox, Mihawk's kid. It had to be, never mind that the sunglasses, bandanna and hat made her almost unrecognisable.

Wait, hat? He knew that hat from somewhere.

Marco studied the picture again before a slow smile expanded across his face. He was going to get years of fun out of this; Fox was wearing Ace' spare hat in her bounty poster! He was going to tease Ace mercilessly about finally confessing his crush to Fox and making their odd relationship official; after all she was borrowing his clothes and getting photographed wearing them while fighting Marines.

Marco knew all about Ace' crush on Fox, though he rarely teased the younger man about it since most of the Moby Dick's crew had been there for the big Dracule father-daughter shouting match a year previously that revealed the Shichibukai had hunted down and killed almost everyone Fox had ever been involved with. There had apparently been a survivor, one the captain had finally made a detour to Mystoria Island for them to look for, but seeing the scar that went most of the way through the man's neck Marco wasn't entirely sure his continued existence had been deliberate on Mihawk's part.

* * *

Marco had first met Fox when she had been just six: the Whitebeard Pirates had been enjoying some downtime on Fishman Island and he had been sitting in the Mermaid Café when a small human girl with untidy blonde hair and golden eyes had brought him his order. The Pirate's first thought on seeing the girl had been, _does my captain know he's got a daughter_, before he noticed that apart from her colouring she looked nothing like Edward Newgate. He'd struck up a conversation with the child and learnt that her mother was a mermaid but her father was not, that she wasn't supposed to talk about her father to strangers and that no, Whitebeard wasn't her father. Marco had then tried to coax her into a guessing game so he could find out who her father really was, but the girl had just giggled and run away from him. Not that she'd run far; she'd followed him from a distance all the way back to the Moby Dick when he left the café, hiding behind buildings or people every time he turned around.

He'd next seen her three days later while he was eating dinner with a few mermaids who'd invited him over to their place: a moderately large, navy-blue-haired mermaid whose tail had separated had knocked on the door and asked his hosts if they could look after 'Fox-chan' for a while. His hosts had agreed and Marco had introduced himself properly to the girl. He'd learnt that the ladies hosting him were Fox' aunties and they often looked after her when her mother was busy. He also learnt she was unreasonably lucky at cards, surprisingly strong for her size and very perceptive. Marco had enjoyed himself thoroughly playing with her and in doing so had won himself a lot of personal attention from his hosts after Fox had been put to bed.

The next morning had been less fun, as he had been eating breakfast with the energetic little girl when none other than 'Hawk Eyes' Mihawk had walked into the house. The swordsman's presence had been shocking enough; that Fox had squealed "Father!" and launched herself at the Shichibukai had made Marco's jaw drop. The pirate had sworn himself to secrecy readily enough for the innocent chibi's sake and later made a point of catching up with her whenever he was on Fishman Island during the next few years. When she vanished aged nine Marco had been worried for her and had kept a sharp eye out for the adorable little girl ever after, just in case. However as time passed and the likelihood of ever finding her grew less and less, little Fox had been pushed to the back of his mind.

No-one had been more surprised than Marco then when on the Moby Dick's deck in the middle of a storm, more than six years after Fox had vanished, the First Division Commander found himself face to face with a tall, sharply-boned, snowy-haired teenager with hauntingly familiar eyes who latched onto his neck and instantly burst into tears.

* * *

Touching on Ace and Marco.


	44. Past

**Past**

Marco had known at once that the white-haired girl sobbing into his chest and calling him 'Uncle Marco' was Fox; those eyes were unique. However the abominable weather meant that all he could do was carry her to his cabin, promise to come back and dash out again to pull his weight and make sure the Moby Dick didn't sink. When his shift ended and Jozu arrived to replace him Marco grabbed some food from the galley and hurried back to his cabin to check on his unexpected guest. He found Fox curled up on his bed with her knees tucked under her chin and tear tracks staining her face. She didn't jump him this time, but stared at him as though she was afraid he'd vanish if she looked away. More worryingly, she didn't meet his eyes.

"Fox?" he said gently, setting the food down on the desk and sitting next to her.

"Marco, I… I…" Fox shuddered, rocking back and forth in a way that reminded the Division Commander of people whose minds had been broken by the horrors they had experienced. He carefully wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"I'm right here, Fox."

Fox closed her eyes and leant into him, her breathing evening out a little. "They made me eat Devil Fruit, Marco," she whispered, her voice hitching slightly. "I lost the sea."

Marco pulled the teenager into his lap and rocked her soothingly like he had back when she'd been just a child coming to him with a grazed knee. He recognised the severity of her plight; being part-mermaid meant the sea was an integral part of Fox and being forever cut off from it as a Devil Fruit User was akin to losing a limb. Worse in fact because the Sea would always be there, just out of her reach. Marco was amazed she hadn't drowned herself yet.

"Who took you?" he asked, rocking her gently with one hand cradling the back of her head. Fox stiffened.

"Won't tell; it won't help," she whispered.

"Tell me," he insisted firmly, command leaking into his voice. Fox flinched, hands rising in an abortive movement to cover her head.

"Sorry!" she whispered, panic seeping into her voice.

"No, I'm sorry," Marco soothed, berating himself for pushing her. What he wanted right now was irrelevant; Fox needed help. "I shouldn't have asked you like that. I was just so worried when you vanished."

"Sorry," Fox repeated, her forehead pressed to his collarbone.

"You have nothing to apologise for," Marco reassured her gently. "Where were you?"

Fox sighed. "Mariejois."

Marco stilled. "You were a slave?" he asked carefully. Mihawk was going to be very displeased when he found out about this.

Fox nodded. "No more dragon hoof though," she added inanely. "I had myself skinned."

Marco hugged her again, wondering as he did so at the strength of mind –or sheer desperation– it took to ask someone to peel a quarter of the skin off your back and then deal with the pain for the time it took such an injury to heal. He also wondered in the back of his mind if he could persuade Pops to spend some time rooting out slavers; or perhaps Mihawk would take care of it. Marco had never seen the World's Greatest Swordsman actually angry but this might just make it happen.

"What happened to your hair?" She had been blonde when she was younger, a beautiful pale blonde like spring sunshine.

Fox shivered. "Devil Fruit; the strain I think," she said quietly. "I survived though. None of the others did."

"Others?"

"There were four of us: one full mermaid and three of us part-bloods," Fox said distantly. "The mermaid slit her own throat with the edge of a shell, one of the others drowned herself and the third one just… stopped." She shuddered. "I tried to drown myself but the Devil Fruit didn't take away my ability to breathe underwater, just my strength. Then I was kept too busy to think about anything except doing as I was told and learning control."

Marco's grip tightened. "I missed my little Fox," he said gently. "It's good to see you again. Are you hungry?"

Fox accepted the food and ate mechanically, clearly not hungry but recognising the importance of not turning down food. Marco sincerely wished she had just turned it down; this was just more evidence of past suffering.

"Can I sleep here?" Fox asked after finishing.

"Of course," Marco said. "I'll take over Thatch's floor."

"Can you stay?" Fox asked in a small voice, eyes downcast as she fiddled with the covers. "I… you make me feel safe."

"I'll get some blankets," Marco capitulated instantly. He knew that he would have to explain a whole lot of things to Pops in the morning as well as coax more answers out of Fox, but for now he could wait.

* * *

Marco woke to find Fox had abandoned the bed at some point in the night and wrapped herself around him like a baby sloth. It really was not appropriate behaviour for a fifteen-year-old girl, but he guessed it was due to the trauma of her past experiences. He tried to extricate himself, but rather than just letting go when he tugged on her arms Fox slipped out of his grip like a snake, darting to her feet and casting around for enemies with a knife held professionally in each hand. Her eyes weren't even open.

"Fox?" he asked carefully, not moving.

He got a grunt in reply as her eyelids flickered, revealing a faint glint of gold. Slowly the battle-ready girl dragged herself into wakefulness, lowering the knives and blinking sleepily.

"Wha?" she yawned, the blades vanishing somewhere on her person.

"Do you always wake up like that?" Marco inquired. Fox just blinked uncomprehendingly at him, one hand rising to rub her eyes.

"Izzit mornin' already?" she mumbled.

"Yes, it is." Where had the vivacious girl who was always the first to rise gone? "Come on, I'll escort you to breakfast."

Fox allowed herself to be towed out of the room towards the mess hall, stumbling and incoherent with elbow-length white hair hanging down her back in a scraggly braid. The wall of sound in the mess room did not rouse her at all; Fox instead clapped her hands over her ears and let him drag her over to a seat with the rest of the Division Commanders, then rested her head on the table while he went to get food.

She woke up gradually as she ploughed through her meal but remained utterly unselfconscious about her bedraggled appearance and salt-stained clothing. Marco wasn't sure if it was due to a cast-iron self-image or total indifference and wasn't sure he wanted to.

"So where were you hiding this one, Marco?" Thatch asked with a teasing grin. "We haven't touched land in over a week!"

Fox looked up. "I came on board yesterday evening," she said evenly, her tone so empty it chilled Marco to the bone. He'd never heard that kind of emotional control from a child before.

"Where from?" Marco asked, trying to get her to lower the defences that had just slammed up like steel walls.

Fox lifted a shoulder. "A boat." She paused, head tilted to one side like a bird. "It probably sank."

"Why come on board at all?" Thatch asked, apparently carelessly. Fox sharp glance at the man suggested she hadn't been fooled for an instant.

"I was looking for Marco."

And they were back to the beginning again. "Why were you looking for me at all?" Marco tried asking, remembering as he did Fox' penchant for word games and her ways of playing around with the truth. It seemed that trait had stuck.

"I wasn't looking for you in particular," the teen mused, eyes dropping to her plate. "Just someone familiar."

It hurt to hear that, to know that Fox had been out in that driving storm in a fragile boat looking for somebody, anybody she knew.

"How long were you looking?" He asked carefully. She shrugged.

"Don't know. What day is it?"

Thatch caught Marco's eye over the top of Fox' head and quietly left to fetch one of the nurses. "It's the fifteenth," he told her.

"What month?"

Marco closed his eyes for a moment. "March."

Fox tapped her lower lip with her fork, an achingly familiar quirk. "Four months and a few days then."

"Where you in the boat the whole time?" He asked carefully.

"No: I got dumped on some island and spent three months there. They gave me the boat."

So she had been at sea in the New World for over a month, looking for 'someone familiar'. "What would you have done if you hadn't found me?"

Fox shrugged. "Found Shanks?"

Marco took note that Fox seemed familiar with Red-Hair, probably because Mihawk and Shanks had enough of a history to be almost friends. "Did you have a Log Pose?"

"No."

"Are you insane?" It burst out entirely unexpectedly. Fox looked him in the eye.

"Probably," she admitted calmly. "I knew there was somebody around here, so I just steered towards the feeling. I didn't much care who it was, so long as they could point me in the right direction. Finding the Moby Dick was a nice surprise." She got to her feet, "Thanks for the food."

Marco tried to catch hold of her but she slipped through his fingersagain and vanished out of the room with surprising speed.

"Who was that?" Thatch asked, having returned with the nurse just in time for them to witness Fox' escape.

Marco got to his feet. "Daughter of an acquaintance," he said dryly, "who may well kill me if I lose her or she gets hurt." He left the room, leaving murmured speculations in his wake. There weren't many people on the Grand Line who could kill him anymore.

* * *

How Marco met Fox again after her escape.


	45. Friendship

**Friendship **

After her unusual arrival on board the Moby Dick Fox spent four months sailing with them. Much to Marco's dismay it proved impossible to break her of her habit of wrapping herself around him at night; even when he tried to sleep elsewhere she somehow found him and when Izo pointed out that the teen sleepwalked across the ship with unerring accuracy to wherever he happened to be _every single night_ he gave up fighting it and let her do as she pleased.

Marco also learnt what she was capable of: she was frighteningly fast, brilliant with knives and her skill with both Kenbunshoku and Busoshoku Haki was incredible. Her combat style was based on speed, evasion and precise strikes to vulnerable points rather than straight combat; an assassin's style. Marco had never seen anything like it before and wasn't sure whether to be impressed or appalled that she could beat most of the Division Commanders several times in a row. After seeing her take down Kingdew, Thatch and Jozu in quick succession Whitebeard had laughed long and hard then promptly invited her to join his crew. Fox had refused instantly.

"I have a father already and I wouldn't renounce him for anything," she said simply. The captain had accepted her answer, but told her the invitation stood regardless.

Fox left the Moby Dick at Fishman Island, running into the arms of a dozen mermaids of various ages and sizes who fussed over her and dragged her away from the Whitebeard Pirates with impressive speed. Fox' mother, the navy-haired mermaid he had first met all those years previously, remained behind to thank both Marco and Whitebeard profusely for looking after her daughter. Marco took the opportunity to share with her what little he had learnt of the circumstances of her prolonged absence, in particular that she had been enslaved.

"That I knew," the mermaid –who had introduced herself as Pearl– spat angrily. "That damned Donflamingo!"

"Donflamingo?" Marco repeated curiously.

"He lifted her right off the street!" Pearl fumed. "If I didn't have so many people depending on me he would not be walking around today!"

Marco had left the conversation there, taking note that Fox' mother was no less dangerous than her father, though in a markedly different way.

Marco did not see Fox again until she was seventeen, but after that she ran into the Whitebeard Pirates every month or so, if only for a few days at a time. The fleet had adopted her as a little sister over the years and her astounding ability to remember absolutely everyone by face if not by name made her a great favourite with the crew. However it was not until Fox was nearly nineteen and Portgas D. Ace wound up on board the Moby Dick that things started getting interesting. Or, more accurately, highly entertaining to watch for everyone other than Fire Fist himself.

* * *

Marco's first indication that things were not quite as they should be was when he woke without the feeling of Fox' body pressed against him when he knew she was on board the ship. She had not dropped the habit of clinging to him in her sleep, though he had learnt that he wasn't the only person she did that to; dropped jaws had abounded when Fox had candidly admitted that she did it to Shanks as well, among other people.

His second indication had been the slightly panicked scream that had rocked the ship from the room Ace was currently occupying. Marco had been the first on the scene and had found his lips twitching at the sight of their quasi-prisoner's outraged confusion at having a strange, scantily clad woman in his bed, her arms tightly wrapped around him so he couldn't get away.

"Congratulations," Marco said in amusement as Thatch came to see what the fuss was about. "You've joined the rarefied company of people who really need to stay on the good side of Dracule Mihawk."

"What the hell are you on about?!" Ace had growled, trying and failing to untangle himself. As time passed and Fox had recovered from her ordeal she had become a much, much heavier sleeper and exponentially more irritable if woken early. Marco found watching somebody else suffer something he had put up with for years to be very cathartic.

"That," Marco pointed at Fox, "Is Mihawk's daughter and she seems to have made you her new favourite pillow."

Ace twitched then blanched. "Hawk-Eyes daughter? The Shichibukai?" Marco nodded. "Get her off me!"

"Ah, ah," Marco shook his head, "bad idea. She gets very, very grumpy if you wake her up before she's ready. As in violently, homicidally grumpy."

"And Marco would know," Thatch butted in with a smile, "as up until last night he was the one waking up like that whenever she visited."

Ace sagged a little. "But I'm hungry!" he whined. Marco took pity on the poor young man and knelt next to his bunk.

"Fox?" he said clearly but calmly, stroking her face. "It's morning: time to get up."

Fox' arms tightened around the unfortunate Ace. "Don' wanna," she slurred, eyes closed and voice sleepy. "M comfy."

"Oh?" Marco inquired, sensing a blackmail opportunity.

"M," Fox crooned. "Warm. S'wunnerful." She snuggled closer into her captive's chest.

By the door Thatch had one hand firmly over his mouth to muffle his snickers while the other was gripping his stomach. Ace looked completely mortified at having been reduced to a hot water bottle and stared at Marco imploringly.

"Please," he begged, "I'll do anything. _Help_."

Marco relented a little. "Thatch, buzz off and shut the door." The Fourth Division Commander did so, likely to share the story with the rest of the crew.

Ace looked miserable but determined. "What do I do?" he asked.

"First, tell me why you're so desperate to get away," Marco countered.

Ace looked unhappy. "I don't want her to kill me when she wakes up."

Marco blinked. "Why would she? She obviously like and trusts you enough to fall asleep on you."

Ace looked utterly poleaxed by that revelation. "Why?"

"Why wouldn't she?"

"The first time I met her I tried to kill her," Ace said bluntly, "and the second time she mugged me and held me at knifepoint."

Marco did not laugh, however much he wanted to; he hadn't known Fox and Ace had a history. "Well she seems to have gotten past that," he pointed out carefully, "So perhaps you two could start over?"

Ace glanced down at the woman wrapped around his chest and sagged. "Why me?" he mumbled.

"You know, I've asked her that very question over a hundred times in the past four years," Marco told him, "and I'm yet to get a straight answer."

"You're trustworthy," Fox muttered, squirming in a way Marco knew from experience felt profoundly disconcerting. "An' you feel nice."

Ace blushed almost purple. Marco had mercy.

"Fox doesn't trust easily, but those few she does trust she is very, very tactile with. It isn't sexual; think of it as having been adopted by a very big, predatory cat," he offered. "She'll flop all over you at mealtime and during down time and cuddle up at night, but it's the physical contact she craves, nothing more. I think it has something to do with her Devil Fruit Ability but she doesn't like to talk about it; she didn't eat one by choice."

Ace looked a little hopeless. "But, but..."

"Hm?" Marco encouraged him.

"She's completely gorgeous! How the hell am I supposed to just-" Ace stopped talking, suddenly aware that he was digging himself into a hole. Marco couldn't help the smile.

"You'll adapt," he promised.

* * *

Ace did indeed adapt, possibly a bit too well. After he joined Whitebeard's crew Fox visited more often, sometimes boarding the Moby Dick late in the evening, crawling in bed with Ace and then leaving right after breakfast. During her rarer, longer visits it became normal to see them messing around together or napping wrapped around each-other on deck like a pair of puppies.

Marco however began to seriously worry about the likelihood of Hawk-Eyes murdering the Whitebeard Pirates Second Division Commander when he caught Ace and Fox skinny dipping together on Foodvalten sixteen months after Fire Fist joined the crew. True, they were acting like a couple of kids and having a no-holds-barred water fight, but Mihawk was not known for being patient or understanding where his daughter was concerned. He tried to talk to Fox about it but the young woman was completely unhelpful.

"It was just some fun, Marco. We were messing around in the water and I stole his hat, then things sort-of went downhill from there. No-one got hurt."

"You were both stark naked," Marco felt obliged to point out, feeling his age. Fox was like a daughter to him but he had little actual influence over her actions.

"So? I'm part mermaid, Marco. Nudity isn't something I was raised to be ashamed of." Fox sighed. "I only wear as much clothes as I do for my father's sake; he doesn't like me showing off my body in public."

Marco would have been quite happy not to have known that.

* * *

Ace and Fox' history.


	46. Reconciliation

**Reconciliation**

Fox was sitting quietly at the small table in the Straw-Hats shared quarters in the Gallery-La building, mending shirts. Luffy watched as the needle flashed as swiftly and surely in her hand as the swords and knives she used in battle.

Fox was the nakama Luffy found it most challenging to relate to; she kept all her feelings inside, even more than Robin did, unless you asked about them. She also firmly believed in letting people make their own mistakes and learning from them, though she gave good advice and was always there if you wanted help with something.

What was worrying Luffy was that he needed to apologise to her about Usopp: Sanji had come back after shopping two days ago and told them he'd seen the sniper practicing what to say when he returned and Luffy had been so excited at the thought of getting his nakama back he hadn't noticed anything was wrong until Fox' South Bird had dive-bombed him, cho-ing furiously. Then Zoro had made them stop and told them that he wouldn't let anyone fetch Usopp and wouldn't accept the sniper back at all unless he apologised for everything he'd said and done.

Chopper and Nami had protested at once, but Zoro had shushed them so thunderously that even Cho the bird had stopped trying to eat Luffy's hat and paid attention. The swordsman had then pointed out that Usopp had lost the fight and left the crew; left his nakama. Zoro went on to say that Luffy was the captain and that having somebody who didn't respect his authority in the crew would cause it to fall apart. He then turned on Luffy and said that if the rubberman just rolled over and let Usopp back in Zoro would be the one leaving, as he refused to serve a captain who let such things as the sniper had said slide.

It was then that Luffy had noticed Fox wasn't there anymore and realised that Zoro was talking about her and how Usopp had upset her. Zoro then added that if Luffy didn't make Usopp apologise it was like saying that Luffy felt Usopp had been right to speak and act as he had, and that leaving the crew was not something that should be taken so lightly. Upon gaining everyone's agreement to do nothing Zoro had run out after Fox, leaving Luffy to think very uncomfortable thoughts.

Fox had not come back for dinner that evening, nor come back at all the next day. She hadn't even been in for breakfast this morning and Zoro had been silent on where she was and what she was doing. Then Luffy had come back to the room for lunch and found her sitting at the little breakfast table with a pile of torn clothes on the chair next to her and one of Sanji's shirts half-mended in her lap. Sanji himself had been standing by the stove cooking and the silence had been oddly oppressive. Luffy hadn't known what to say. He knew he owed her an apology, but the more it sat in his head the more things he realised he needed her forgiveness for.

Usopp leaving had hurt her; she told Luffy her dream was to have nakama strong enough to stand by her and rescue her, but he knew what she really meant was that she needed those nakama to never, ever so much as _think_ of leaving her, no matter what. Usopp had left. Usopp had abandoned her, abandoned Luffy, abandoned all of them and in doing so he had taken some of Fox' dream away. That Luffy had even considered just letting Usopp back on the crew had hurt her more: Nami had explained to him last night that Fox had seen his willingness to let the sniper back on the crew as Usopp being more important to Luffy than Fox was. That Usopp had abandoned the crew and Fox had been completely loyal made it worse for her, making her feel unwanted and rejected, never mind that by wanting Usopp to come back without apologising first, Luffy was saying he agreed with all the horrible, hurtful things the sniper had said to her.

Luffy didn't agree with anything Usopp had said to her, but in his joy at getting a nakama back he had forgotten that he was not the only one Usopp had hurt. Fox had poured herself into Merry and Usopp had accused her of not caring at all; Usopp might have loved the little ship a lot but Fox had known her best and still missed her the most. Luffy could still see the pain in Fox at having lost the little caravel, like she had lost a precious friend, and it made him wonder. Fox' Devil Fruit connected her to living things, so that meant Merry had been alive, sort of. Because Fox had been able to feel Merry was alive, how did that mean she had felt when they laid Merry to rest?

"Fox?" he asked.

"Captain," Fox acknowledged, eyes rising briefly from her mending. She had done two of Sanji's shirts already, one each of Nami's and Robin's and was working on one of Luffy's own vests.

"Did you talk to Merry? Before, I mean," he said hurriedly. "Back when we'd just started sailing together."

Fox' lips quirked up slightly. "I've been talking to Merry ever since I first mended her, back when you ripped the mast off to fight Laboon," she said quietly, eyes on her work. "At first she was like a tiny baby, barely more than sensations and emotions. But the whole crew loved her so much and I put so much work into fixing her that she truly came to life and grew into a lovely girl. I miss her." A tear slipped down Fox' cheek.

Luffy suddenly understood why Fox had been so very angry with Usopp when he refused to let Merry rest. "She was like a daughter to you, wasn't she? Not just a nakama."

"She was." Fox tied off the end of a thread, put Luffy's vest aside and picked up another shirt, one of Zoro's this time. "I've never put so much of myself into a ship before."

Losing a brother had hurt Luffy terribly; he couldn't even imagine how horrible it would be to lose a child. He put his hat on the table then dropped to his knees and touched his forehead to the floor.

"I'm so sorry!" he burst out. "I hurt your feelings! I wasn't thinking and I said things I shouldn't have! I'm trying to be a good captain, I really am!"

There was a soft sigh and a sound of rustling fabric before a familiar pair of knees entered his field of vision. "Get up Luffy," Fox said quietly.

"Not until you accept my apology!"

Fox made a small sound somewhere between a giggle and a sob. "I accept your apology and I forgive you. Now give me a hug: I really need one."

Luffy sat upright and threw his arms around his assassin, taking advantage of his rubber body to wrap himself around her as tightly as possible. "I'm really sorry for not respecting your dream," he mumbled into her shoulder.

Fox sighed. "As captain, your decisions affect your entire crew, not just you," she reminded him. "And a captain who allows others to walk over him and disrespect his decisions will not be a captain for very much longer."

"Zoro would have left with you if I just let Usopp back in, wouldn't he?" Luffy asked quietly.

"Yes," Fox replied simply.

"I thought so. It isn't easy being captain."

Fox smiled. "You notice I don't have a crew on my boat; I've seen what kind of responsibility being captain is and I want no part of it. You've more courage than I do, leading like you do." She kissed his cheek. "Now let me finish my mending or we'll be setting sail in our underwear when Franky gets the boat done."

Luffy let go, chuckling at the thought of his crew sailing a ship in nothing but vests and underpants: Zoro with his swords and haramaki, him with his straw hat, Sanji with a cigarette sticking out of his mouth and Nami with the Log Pose, Robin and Fox just in their underthings. Chopper only ever wore a hat and trousers anyway.

"Where's the marimo?" Sanji asked, putting a drink and two plates down on the table in front of them. Luffy immediately commandeered the stack of meat, leaving the pretty little fishy rolls to Fox.

"On Swift Hunter, playing with my swords," Fox replied, finishing a seam. "I would let him have one of them but most of my blades are shorter than he's comfortable with; the only one that isn't I refuse to part with and Zoro doesn't want it badly enough to pry it from my cold, dead fingers." She popped one of the fish rolls in her mouth and hummed happily. "Fabulous as always, Sanji-kun."

* * *

Because this was going to be upsetting and needed addressing.


	47. Leaving

**Leaving**

On seeing the new ship and being told by Iceberg to take Franky with them by any means necessary, Fox left the 'abduction' to the men and set about loading their possessions on board and retrieving from Swift Hunter the things Nami had entrusted to her. Fox also retrieved the egg Nola had given her, as it was showing signs that it would be hatching soon.

Franky had been as good as his word and Fox had a small workroom all her own and a slightly larger bedroom. They were placed adjacent to the main men's and women's quarters, the bedroom below the workroom and the two connected by a hatch and brackets on the wall that could be climbed up in the place of a ladder. Both rooms were narrow, but deep: the bedroom on the main deck level was only as wide as her new double bed was long, but said bed only took up the rear third of the floor space. The workroom was slightly narrower due to the shape of the foredeck, but still perfectly adequate for what she had in mind. Franky had installed a long bench attached to the wall in the workroom, one that ran the cabin's full length with cupboards underneath it. Fox would have plenty of room for her various projects and treasures.

Her Eternal Pose equipment and Phantom outfit would remain with Swift Hunter, as Fox could not afford for either to be associated with her pirate identity, but she had plenty of other things to bring on board, like a good chunk of her wardrobe, a wide assortment of weaponry and the associated gear for her various hobbies.

Fox had not had much time for hobbies on the Going Merry; she had initially been too wary to reveal that much of herself to people she barely knew, then as the Merry had become more damaged she simply hadn't had the time or the energy for them. This new ship however was strong, incredibly strong, so she could while away her time with a clear conscience. The white-haired woman's main hobby was making her own clothes; she made clothes for a few other people as well from time to time, but being a solitary soul meant she wore most of her own creations. All her flower-print garments were homemade. She also liked to embroider, knot and occasionally knit –her mother had taught her and her enslavement had honed her skills to a professional level– as well as draw and write. The only hobby she had kept up throughout her time on the Merry was thoroughly chronicling everything that happened in her latest logbook: her father had taught her reading, writing, mathematics, geography and navigation out of his own logbooks and she was meticulous in keeping up her own in his honour. They contained everything from the day's date and weather to sketches of local wildlife and the ship's approximate location, as well as a litany of daily activities, meals eaten, random thoughts and observations.

Fox was also obsessive about keeping up her training; being an assassin meant the vast majority of her skills could be honed in the privacy of the Merry's forward cannon deck. She had not always been sleeping when she retreated there, though she had thus far allowed the crew to think so. Now her secret was more or less out in the open however she intended to train somewhere more visible, if not actually on deck. She was also looking forward to a chance to spar against Zoro in a more open and varied environment than her private dojo. Letting her skills rust and failing to take every available opportunity to learn more would mean disrespecting her shishou; Fox would not bring shame to the man who had made her the most dangerous woman alive.

* * *

Once Franky had capitulated and finally boarded Luffy's new ship –not to mention put his swimming trunks back on– Fox pitched in with the rest of the crew in helping set the sails. Usopp had not appeared, leading Fox to suspect he wasn't coming at all. She wasn't sure how she felt about that; on the one hand, he had abandoned the crew out of foolishness, but on the other he had helped rescue Robin. So far as Fox was concerned, his assistance at Enies Lobby meant she no longer felt the need to kill him on sight for the insults he had heaped upon both her captain and herself. Beyond that… Fox loathed cowardice and an inability to face up to reality was a defect she despised above almost every other. The Grand Line was no place for people who couldn't play the hand life had dealt them, no matter how terrible it might be. But if he came back Fox would try, for Luffy and Merry's sake. The little caravel had loved the sniper dearly.

Then she sensed the approaching Marine ship and briefly dashed inside to fetch her hat: while a bandanna and sunglasses were enough to fool strangers, the hat was a necessity to hide from people who were properly acquainted with Dracule Mihawk's daughter.

When Garp started throwing cannonballs at them Fox joined Zoro in cutting them in half to protect the ship, barely taking any notice when she sensed Usopp arrive on the broken bridge overlooking Shipwreck Island. Whatever he was here for, protecting the charming brig sloop Franky had built them had priority. She ignored the shouting completely, letting Usopp's voice wash over her like white noise and not even bothering to allow her mind to turn the sounds into words. She didn't care what he said, she wouldn't let him back if she was captain; since she wasn't it was up to Luffy to decide what to do. She did hear his wailed apology though, and absently took note that her captain had let him on board after it.

After they had named their new ship, the 'Thousand Sunny', and gotten away from Vice-Admiral Garp and his highly accurate cannonballs, Luffy proposed a toast to the return of their lost nakama, the gaining of a new one and the Straw-Hats' beautiful new ship. Fox joined in cheerfully, looking forward to visiting Sabaody and Fishman Island again.

* * *

The first thing Zoro had done on seeing the crow's nest that doubled as a training room was challenge Fox to a fight using one of the more exotic weapons at her disposal. He'd sparred against her when she used knives a good number of times –he hadn't won yet as she was just too fast– but wanted to find out how he would have to adapt against something like that meteor hammer. His lover had however emerged from her workroom carrying a trident.

"You haven't seen me use merman combat or weapons style yet, have you?" she told him with a wicked smile, twirling the long weapon like it weighed nothing at all. "How about we stay on deck; this is going to get messy."

It was indeed, as Fox completely blindsided him bydoing something similar to what Arlong had, using seawater droplets to fire powerful attacks in between laying into him with the trident, which was far more versatile a weapon than it looked. She also landed hits from a distance with more force than he had ever felt from her before: it felt like she was bending his body from the inside.

"I'm no master of Fishman Karate," Fox said as Zoro climbed back on board yet _again_, "But I do well enough to be getting on with. This is a part of my heritage and I refuse to be mediocre even if I will never be able to use it as fully as it is meant to be used."

"As it is meant to be used?" Zoro repeated, coughing up blood on the deck. Her fist had connected with his gut from six feet away like a localised earthquake!

"It's an underwater style; the blows are more effective that way," Fox told him, spinning the trident into a guard position. "Ready for round nine?"

"I'm going to disarm you if it kills me," Zoro growled before charging her once more. The trick was dodging when she took one hand off the trident to throw a punch; even from a good distance those shockwaves were incredibly powerful. "Why don't you fight like this more often?"

"And announce to all and sundry that I'm technically a mermaid? Not a chance," Fox said flatly, parrying his swords and catching one between the prongs of the trident, forcing the swordsman to retreat or lose the blade. "This is my heritage and I'm proud of it, but it isn't who I am. They call me the Cursed Maiden on Fishman Island; the mermaid without a tail who lost the ability to swim. I'm a cautionary tale about the perils of Devil Fruit and getting too involved in humans."

"And you still consider yourself a mermaid?"

"I have family there and people who don't care that I'm all but lost to the sea," Fox said grimly, fending off a flurry of powerful attacks and catching his ankle between the trident's prongs, launching him into the air and over the rail. "I'll not let go of who I am because of something that was done to me against my will!"

Zoro could respect that, though hopefully he would find a way of disarming her soon. This was getting embarrassing.

* * *

Goodbye to Water Seven!


	48. Afloat

**Afloat**

"Why are you here?"

Zoro glanced over at Luffy from his bunk. "This is the men's cabin, Luffy. Where else would I be?"

"In Fox' cabin," the rubberman said bluntly. "You haven't bunked with us since we left Skypeia. Why are you back now? Did you have an argument or something?"

"No, no argument," Zoro said. "I stayed with her after Skypeia because she was putting so much of herself into keeping Merry afloat that it affected her health. She's fine now."

"You shared a bed at Gallery-La, seaweed head," Sanji pointed out sourly.

"She can't sleep dorm-style unless she's actually sharing a bed with someone," Zoro said shortly, not wanting to discuss Fox' private issues. "She has her own room now."

"But aren't you two together?" Chopper asked innocently.

Zoro closed his eyes. "Yes. But on board a ship the captain is in charge and our relationship might get in the way of our duties as crew. So unless Luffy agrees with it, I'm going to be sleeping in here."

Luffy frowned. "Zoro, you aren't allowed to sleep in here anymore. Move your stuff into Fox' cabin."

Zoro sat up, turned and stared. "What?"

Luffy grinned. "Captain's orders! Shishishi!"

Zoro snorted, smirked, climbed out of his bunk and emptied out his locker. Then he walked out of the cabin, Sanji's faint and pitiful wail about the unfairness of the world music to his ears. Fox' cabin was just across the deck and Zoro pushed open the door with his foot, dumping his stuff on the floor so he could close it behind him. He then added his clothing to the partly-filled wardrobe and his swords to the brackets above the bed. Fox wasn't in; she'd gone for a bath after dinner and would probably be quite some time, considering how much she loved water. Stripping off Zoro crawled into the bed, but didn't let himself fall asleep. He wanted to be awake when his lover got back. In the meantime he had a good look at his surroundings.

It wasn't remotely girly, which was a relief; the carpet was green and the bedding was plain white. There was a wash basin with a mirror over it on one side of the door and a large wardrobe took up most of the space along that wall between the basin and the bed. On the other side of the door was a perch for Cho and a piece of furniture that looked like the bastard child of a bookshelf and a sideboard which was loaded with books, boxes, scrolls and other odds and ends including what Zoro recognised as Dials and an strange cage-thing containing an egg as big as his head. The walls on three sides of the bed had weapons hanging on them, including the trident she'd thrown him around with earlier. It had taken a while but he'd eventually managed to bypass the advantages of increased range and leverage and disarm her; they'd ended the fight there as it was nearly time for dinner but Zoro was keen to see how she held up fighting bare-handed with that fishman style.

The weapons were all interesting, though he wasn't sure how you were supposed to fight with the sheaves of six-inch needles. The chains, he could see how they would work, and that scythe looked pretty interesting, but most of what was on the wall was knives. Knives of all shapes and sizes and alloys, from tiny two-inch stilettos up to the matched swords she'd used at Enies Lobby. Her beautiful Kairoseki katana wasn't here, but that made sense as Fox would never risk any of the crew seeing it and connecting it to her masked persona. That was also why she'd left her Eternal Pose workshop on board Swift Hunter: so nobody coming on board would be able to connect the Angel of Death with Dracule Lisska.

Zoro smirked at the ceiling; Fox had gotten herself a truly fantastic nickname and a massive bounty. She'd confessed to him about her encounter with the Marine with the camera and was amused by the lengths she'd gone to in creating a back-story for her 'public face', as he considered it to be. 220 million and a list of crimes that had made Luffy laugh out loud and Nami go pale, but that were only a fraction of the things she'd been up to; Zoro was immensely amused by the fact that Fox had two completely different bounty posters and a total value of 930 million. Admittedly the poster for the Phantom Fox was just a photograph of a mask, but it counted.

Then Fox walked into the cabin and her face lit up at once:

"Zoro? I thought-"

"Captain's orders," he told her with a wicked grin, getting up and walking over to kiss her. "You're stuck with me now."

"I think I can come up with some ways to pass the time," she countered, her hands wandering leisurely over his chest. "Franky _did_ say he soundproofed my cabin…"

* * *

The next day Usopp and Luffy fished, putting their catches in the massive fish tank Franky had installed so they would never be short of fresh fish. Robin was happily absorbed in the books she'd bought from Water Seven, sitting in the aquarium bar that had the fish tank the captain and sniper were adding fish to as its primary feature. Franky was just enjoying the ride, Chopper was exploring the little infirmary, Nami was in the library and Sanji was dividing his time between cooking, waiting on Nami and Robin and watching the fight taking place on deck between Fox and the shitty swordsman. The previous day Fox had thrown the marimo all over the place; today she was dancing, ducking and dodging around his two swords while trying to land a hit bare-handed. Sanji would have interfered, except Fox had asked him not to, saying that she enjoyed the thrill of a fight and wanted to test herself. The chef had seen her bright, hopeful smile and folded like a cheap card table.

It was interesting to watch, not least because Fox-chan was faster than the shitty marimo and was not above resorting to every cheap trick in the book. Well, almost every cheap trick in the book; Sanji noticed that while the duo did flirt during a fight neither went beyond words. Probably because this was practice for real combat rather than just for fun: Sanji had heard Zoro ask Fox to show him more fishman karate so he knew what to expect when they got to Fishman Island, in case of trouble. This was why Sanji was watching too.

It was an interesting style with a lot of distance hits that moved like shockwaves and strong blocks. Fox was also able to call water up from the sea to blast Zoro off-balance, which had utterly gobsmacked both chef and swordsman the first time she'd done it. Fox had pointed out that Devil Fruit meant she became a hammer when she fell _into_ water; it didn't prevent her from manipulating it from a distance. She also added that she'd dispatched more than a few devil Fruit Users to the great beyond with a timely water blast, as they never expected the sea to come to them.

"Why _fishman_ karate when you're a mermaid?" Zoro asked, jumping up out of the way of a punch and bouncing off the mainmast.

"I have legs," Fox said blandly; "and mermaid styles are not designed with legs in mind. My mother's second cousin sponsored me into the Karate Dojo on Fishman Island so I could learn to defend myself."

"How old were you?" Zoro lunged, but one of his swords was batted away and the other ducked under. Fox then launched a beautiful uppercut that hit him in the jaw, propelling him upwards into the air.

"Five; he resumed my training personally when I was sixteen." She grinned at the marimo, who was spitting blood. "Compared to him I'm a somewhat capable novice but he's the best I've ever seen, so it evens out."

"So your mother's second cousin is a fishman?" Zoro clarified.

"Yep; one of my favourite uncles growing up," Fox confirmed. "If we bump into him I'll introduce you."

* * *

Guess that fishman for fifty points!


	49. Chills

**Chills**

After lunch Fox had retreated to her cabin: the egg Nola had given her was starting to give off signs of being ready to hatch and Fox fully intended to be there when the baby serpent emerged. Monitoring the gradual increase in movement within the skull-sized egg was slightly hypnotic; she didn't notice the passing of time until the distinctive sound of a flare going off at close range jarred her out of her trance. Determining that at this rate it would be at least half a day more before the egg hatched, Fox hurried out on deck just in time to be roped into helping the ship change course. She stayed outside as the sudden storm whipped up, helping with the sails and rigging until they had escaped the pressure cell and the wind faded away into thick mist that smothered the sky.

Fox knew this area: this was the Florian Triangle. Moriah's turf. She'd never crossed it on the sea's surface before.

* * *

Fox leant against Zoro's shoulder and watched as Luffy, Sanji and Nami climbed on board the ship with the animated skeleton on it that had drifted past them in the mist.

"He's a Devil Fruit User," she murmured in the swordsman's ear, "goodness knows what type. And I don't like our being here at all."

"Here by this ship, or here in the Florian Triangle?" Zoro quietly asked back.

"The latter; ships drift within the Florian Triangle due to the circular currents and mild, windless weather, so many crews are likely destroyed by starvation or disease, but I think there is something or someone here that is taking advantage of the area's reputation to skim a little more off the top, as it were," Fox explained quietly. "I can feel living things and things that act alive but shouldn't, and we are drawing closer to them. It makes my skin crawl."

"Sounds like a good fight," Zoro mused.

"Or a tricky enemy," Robin chimed in. "One who prefers traps and cunning to outright battle."

Both Zoro and Fox mused on this until the trio of explorers returned with the living skeleton, who introduced himself as 'Dead Bones' Brook and was a total pervert, as his next words were to ask to see Fox' panties.

The white-haired woman frowned at him. "My underwear is my own business and the only person allowed to ask about it is my lover. Cease and desist before I put a Kairoseki blade through you."

The skeleton with the afro bowed and apologised to her before turning to ask Robin the same question.

"Hey, Luffy!" Zoro snarled, "What the hell is this guy?"

"He's so funny so I made him our nakama!" the captain explained cheerily.

"I won't accept that!" the swordsman roared, before turning on Sanji and Nami. "Why do you think you went with him? You were supposed to stop Luffy running wild!"

"We're ashamed," navigator and cook said together, heads bowed. Then Brook decided it was dinnertime, so they adjourned to the dining room with their new… crewmate? Luffy relied on his instincts more than anything else and said instincts had helped him put together a formidable crew, so this stranger was probably here to stay. Fox wasn't sure how she felt about that right now; she was still hurting from the Usopp fiasco. She could be polite though, as she had with Vivi.

Fox collected her hat and sunglasses before sitting down at the table. She put a bandanna over her hair every morning now as a matter of course, but the other accessories she preferred to do without. Well she liked the hat, but wearing the spectacles made her feel like she was hiding. She didn't like hiding on board her captain's ship.

* * *

After dinner Brook shared the story of how he had come to be a skeleton wandering on a ghost ship –it did indeed involve Devil Fruit– then it was discovered that he had no reflection. No shadow, either. After the panic died down a little Brook went on to explain that his shadow had been stolen and that he could no longer walk in the light as a result. After that brief instant of terrible depression however the skeleton proclaimed how happy he was to have finally met people after so long alone at sea, but added he should probably decline the invitation to become Luffy's nakama due to his lack of shadow. Luffy of course wasn't going to let that slide:

"If that's the case, we'll get your shadow back! Tell me who stole it!" Brook was silent. "Where is it?!"

"You're a really good person." Brook said, sounding stunned. "I'm surprised. Even then, I cannot tell you. I only just met you. You shouldn't say that 'you'll die for me'."

"It's Gecko Moriah, one of the Shichibukai," Fox said tiredly, folding her arms under her chest. "He is the only Devil Fruit User Fox knows of to have power over shadows."

"Another one?!" chorused Nami, Sanji, Chopper and Zoro.

"Another?" Brook repeated. "However, let's sing a song! In honour of the good encounter we had today. I'm very proud of my abilities. I used to be the musician on my pirate ship."

Luffy's eyes sparkled and Fox resigned herself to the inevitable: the rubberman had apparently been agitating for a ship's musician since before she joined them at the Baratie and was not going to let this one go now that he had been found.

As the gates of the floating island-ship of Thriller Bark closed behind them the egg in Fox' cabin started to hatch, so the assassin swiftly begged off this particular adventure. Luffy, on hearing _why_ she wanted to stay on board, was quick to agree and eager to see the baby snake for himself after he got back. Fox then hurried back to her cabin, removed the egg from the incubator and placed it on the bed on top of a towel and settled down to wait. Her reverie was disturbed in short order however, as her senses warned her of an intruder on board; a Devil Fruit User whose life-force signature was warped. Glancing from the egg to the door and back again Fox sighed, grabbed her Sea Stone knives and went on the hunt. Hopefully this wouldn't take too long.

* * *

Brook and Thriller Bark. And in the last chapter, Fox' mother's second cousin is indeed Jinbe. Congrats to guisniperman who got there first! Kudos to InsaneScriptist and s.f. the Guest reviewer, who also replied.


	50. Thrills

**Thrills**

As the anchor dropped, seemingly all by itself, Fox emerged from her cabin with a predatory stalk and knives bare in her hands.

"Some-one's where they shouldn't be," she singsonged threateningly, her tone sending chills down Sanji's spine. "A Devil Fruit User has come to play; can Fox kill them?"

The deck hatch opened and Fox pounced, clearly hitting something despite there not being anything to see. A knife flashed, a man's voice cried out and suddenly there was a stranger with a lion's muzzle standing on the deck with Fox' knife stuck in his kidney.

"Fox does not like you," the assassin hissed as the stranger yanked himself away from the blade. "You smell like perversion and cowardice." She lunged again and the intruder fled, vanishing from sight again as it leapt off the ship's railing toward the edge of the island. Fox shook the blood off the blade before turning to Sanji.

"Stinker will probably be a problem," she said flatly. "Stinker is the sort to spy on girls in the bath and rape a woman in her sleep." That said, she went back to her cabin.

Sanji leapt into action as the ship rolled. Nami-san was on the island with that, that beast! He had to protect her!

* * *

Zoro was reluctant to leave the Thousand Sunny after it became entangled in a gigantic spider's web alongside Brook's ghost ship, but after checking in on Fox –who was babying a very large, leathery egg which was beginning to hatch– he decided to go with the others, if only to try and keep his captain out of trouble. Fox would be fine without him.

"Keep an eye out, will you?" he added to Cho, who chooo-ed agreement before flying up to perch on the yard above the deck. Zoro had come to an understanding with the South Bird: they would both keep a watchful eye out for things that might hurt Fox and make sure she was not just safe, but well. In recognition of their truce Zoro snuck fruit out of the kitchen for Cho and the bird stayed out of the way when he and Fox were having couple time.

Reassured that the ship would still be there when they got back, Zoro followed his captain into the island's interior.

* * *

Fox was utterly entranced as the baby snake's head poked through the leathery surface of the egg and blinked up at her. The white-haired woman had been emoting with the foetal serpent for over a week now, channelling positive feelings and acceptance to it. Seeing golden eyes gaze up at her and sensing the snake's recognition and adoration, Fox fell in love with the four-foot hatchling.

"Oh, aren't you beautiful," she cooed, "Just like your mother. Since mama was named for Montblanc Noland, I think I'll call you Calla, after Calgara." The baby snake, already twice as long as an adult viper from the Blues, trilled happily at her. "So welcome to the world, Calla. How about we find you some nice fresh fish to eat, hm?"

Calla draped around her shoulders, Fox went to coax her baby's first meal out of the fish tank. Normal fish were dumb enough that she didn't feel a smidge of guilt about luring them to their deaths. Her adorable little reptile had eagerly swallowed three small fish and gone to sleep, still coiled around Fox' shoulders, when the assassin sensed Zoro coming back.

While Fox monitored everything living in a five mile radius as a matter of course and had mental flags on the people she cared about so that she could leap into action if they started showing signs of dropping off their mortal coil, she did not actually pay much attention beyond that unless she was bored or doing something that could safely be left to continue on automatic, like sewing seams or knitting. She only really paid attention when things or people got within half a mile or were moving with unusual speed. Zoro had done the former alongside Sanji and Luffy, but they were in the company of a large number of things that were animated yet weren't alive and a Devil Fruit User. Her nakama were also unconscious and suffering some kind of shock.

The assassin frowned. Incoming enemy with hostages, intending probably to raid the boat down to the keel; leader with unknown capabilities, but likely a member of the Shichibukai's crew; accompanied by large numbers of minions of the disposable variety. She whipped her tinted spectacles out of her pocket, adjusted her hat and decided that instant overkill was the best way to deal with the situation; Fox wanted her Greenie back.

The assassin let the Devil Fruit User and her minions –were those zombies? The Grand Line never stopped being interesting– onto the ship, then once her fellow Straw-Hats were in no danger of being dropped overboard she stopped hiding behind her Colour of Concealment and let her Colour of the Ruling Queen crash down upon the Thousand Sunny until the boards creaked. Below her the Devil Fruit User collapsed in a boneless heap and the zombies dropped like stones, some actually falling into pieces. Fox then reined herself in again, locked the Devil Fruit User in the handcuffs she'd kept from the Enies Lobby Incident and set about the dreary yet necessary task of heaving the zombies overboard. Whatever was animating them was Devil Fruit related, so the sea would counter whatever it was that made them tick and they would cease to be a problem.

As she tossed the patchwork corpses over the rail, Fox wondered if all of Moriah's minions were this weak. If they were, no wonder her father thought so little of him. Her father didn't have minions at all, but then again he didn't need them. Most people had no idea that Mihawk even had _connections_, believing him to be completely solitary, which wasn't quite true. Her father simply found the vast majority of people to be petty, foolish, weak or a combination of those three things and therefore not worth his time. He was also brusque and antisocial; Shanks was his friend simply because Red-Hair was so charmingly sociable and easygoing that Mihawk had given up trying to fend him off. That the Yonko was neither petty, foolish nor weak meant the her father had not killed Shanks for the relentless assault on his boundaries yet, though there had been a few close calls, mostly involving her. The champagne incident for example. Or the first time she had sleepwalked into his cabin and promptly been found there by her father in the morning. Or when he had invited her to join his crew by saying, "come on sweetheart, you know you want to!" right in front of said father.

Sometimes Fox suspected Shanks was doing it on purpose. Others she thought he just didn't care about the consequences. Red-Hair had well-hidden depths she'd only glimpsed briefly once or twice, but that filled her with a feeling of safety mingled with apprehension. Safety, because she knew he would never, ever harm her unless she did something totally, insanely out of character and even then he'd probably pull his punches. Apprehension, because while he wouldn't hurt _her_, it was a big world out there and if the Yonko ever wanted to smash something or someone else into itty bitty pieces, it would get smashed and _stay_ smashed. The sheer scale of his power and ability was staggering.

Kicking the last zombie into the sea, Fox moved her insensible prisoner into the Aquarium Bar and locked her in. Then she moved the three unconscious men into the dining room and contemplated how to wake them. She was about to try healing whatever damage had been done when she realised she didn't want to deal with the odd girl she'd taken prisoner at all. In fact, she didn't even want her as a prisoner; the girl had nothing Fox wanted, so why not dump her back on the island?

Perfectly content with her minor epiphany, Fox removed the cuffs from the pink-haired girl in the Goth Lolita outfit, tucked her under an arm and unloaded her onto the jetty next to the ship. When she awoke her mind would probably edit out what Fox had done to her and substitute something else more innocuous in order to protect her sanity. Taking the time to place the girl out of sight of the ship, Fox then returned to her patients.

A quick examination determined that they would wake up when they were ready, so the best way to get them up and moving was to convince them they were missing something. With this in mind Fox got the oven heating, removed some meat from the pantry and cut in into Luffy-sized portions. Then she put it in the oven, removed her sunglasses and shirt and set about waiting for her –slightly– evil scheme to come to fruition. So she was bored; it was a harmless little prank really.

She sensed Usopp, Chopper, Robin and Franky returning just as the meat finished cooking. Smiling naughtily, she opened the oven and said loudly:

"Cooking all this meat made me so hot I had to take my shirt off!"

* * *

Usopp opened the door to the dining room just in time to hear Fox' declaration; his jaw dropped as he took in her appearance.

She was wearing her bandanna and cowboy hat, but other than that all she had on her upper half was a string bikini that barely kept her… assets… in check and a four-foot snake draped around her shoulders. She was holding a tray of meat joints fresh from the oven and smirking in a way that suggested the joke was on you. Across the room, three heads lifted from the floor.

"…shirt off?" Sanji whispered hoarsely.

"Meat," Luffy moaned, sounding rather zombie-like himself.

"_Fox_," Zoro rasped.

All three opened their eyes at the same time and all three were looking in the right direction to get a good look at Fox, posing with the tray low enough to give them a good look at her chest. Their reactions were fairly predictable.

Sanji's eyes morphed into hearts and he wiggled on the floor like a hyperactive noodle, burbling about divine beauty and 'mellorine!';

Luffy lunged for the meat, juggled the first bit to stop it from burning his fingers and tore into it with gusto, barely noticing the siren holding the tray at all;

Zoro levered himself upright, carefully took the tray away from his girlfriend, set it on the counter and then graced her with a grin so toothy and eager it made Usopp turn around and look the other way. The muffled but very enthusiastic noises that broke out behind him told him that ignoring the couple was the best course of action for now; Luffy was engrossed in his meal and the chef was still insensible and wriggling on the floor. He stepped back on deck to let the others know he'd found most of their missing nakama; he did want to know where Fox' snake had come from though! It was huge!

* * *

A little bit of all sorts of things and Fox indulges her sense of humour.


	51. Conviction

**Conviction**

After stuffing his face with all the meat Fox had prepared and listening to Usopp and Franky talk about what had happened to them on the island, particularly about Brook being Laboon's long-lost nakama, Luffy was more determined than ever to get the skeleton to join his crew. Zoro resigned himself to rescuing yet another shadow and, after being introduced to Fox' newest pet and kissing his lover goodbye, set off back towards the zombie-filled mansion. Fox stayed behind: Luffy had ordered her to after hearing how a load of zombies had come on board and tried to steal their food. The rubberman had also reminded her that the snake coiled round her neck was still just a baby and needed looking after. Little Calla seemed to like the captain very much and had trilled happily when he tickled her under the chin.

Fox had seemed about to protest, but a Sea Iguana had climbed up onto the rail at that moment and she had abruptly capitulated; Zoro intended to find out what that was about later. Now however it was the middle of the night, he needed his shadow back by dawn and Franky had mentioned a legendary samurai zombie Zoro really wanted to fight against.

* * *

Perona was nervous. She couldn't quite pinpoint the source of her concern, but she knew that something, somewhere was wrong. After coming back from raiding the Straw-Hat ship –not that there had been anything worth taking– she had been ordered by Moriah-sama to deal with the returning intruders alongside Dr. Hogback. Absolom was busy marrying himself to a woman he had abducted from the crew and so was not helping, but Perona had thought she could cope.

Instead she had found herself faced with a man so negative her Hollows had no effect on him; in fact trying to depress him caused her powers to be reflected back on her. She had therefore abandoned the field and was running for safety, the negative man in hot pursuit. As she ran however the creeping feeling that something was badly wrong only increased. Hadn't she had more zombies than the ones currently facing off against the negative man's comrades? Where had they gone? Why had she felt a thrill of terror when she heard the Straw-Hats were mounting a counter-offensive and been inexplicably relieved when she saw her prospective opponents?

Perona had good instincts and those instincts were telling her that running away was a good idea; running as far and as fast as she could, without looking back. Not that she would abandon Moriah-sama! Not even if part of her felt it sounded like a _really_ good idea…

* * *

Fox knelt on the floor in her cabin, a slightly singed orange cowboy hat gripped tightly in her hands as Beastie croaked worriedly at her. This… this could not be happening. She had never considered Teach might have sunk this low. The despicable man's plan –or at least part of it– was clear now. Rather than trying to kill Ace the traitor had beaten him and handed him over to the Marines. Fox would have sensed Ace dying from the other side of the planet and dashed to his aid, but the hotheaded narcoleptic fell unconscious with depressing regularity and it was hard to tell the difference between asleep and knocked out. Now though, now Ace was stuck in Impel Down and scheduled for execution. Fox had to get him back; he was her nakama and she was very attached to her nakama, few though they were. She had felt kinship with him the moment she saw him, even though he had been trying to kill her at the time. Fox knew what it was like to live in the shadow of a powerful father, to fear his enemies and put all of your strength into making yourself your own person. She had achieved it by separating herself out, allowing part of herself to remain quietly in his wake while the rest of her set out to discover who she really was.

The assassin had done her best to forgive her parents for the hand life had dealt her and their part in it, but it was hard sometimes. Like when her father cut a bloody swath through her exes without even asking her first. Her mother didn't really get it; Pearl had never lived in a father's shadow because said father's identity was a secret known only to Pearl herself and Fox, Pearl's mother having died a few years before.

Fox shook away her rambling thoughts; now was not the time. She needed to help Ace, even if her first duty was to Luffy, her captain. She pulled a crate out of the shelf next to her, retrieved brush and paper and set about writing letters to everyone within a fortnight's travel who would be willing to assist her. Some of the letters included pleas to pass the message on further; others were simply requests for information or aid. Those complete, she placed each letter in its own travelling case, carried them out onto the deck and activated them before throwing them over the side of the ship. Massive flying fish leapt away through the tops of the waves, turtles swam just below the surface and strange, deep-sea creatures sank into the depths beneath her. Once reassured that her letters would reach their intended recipients, Fox returned to her cabin: she had one more letter to write.

Ace had to know he wasn't going to be abandoned.

* * *

Perona woke with a scream, her mind filled with the horrors of cockroaches and ten-ton hammers until her loyal minions were able to calm her down. When she took notice of her surroundings, the destroyed buildings and distinct shortage of zombies and the Oars zombie wreaking havoc, she knew she had to get off Thriller Bark before it sank and dumped her into the ocean. The pink-haired girl decided her best bet was to empty the kitchen and treasure room into the Straw-Hats ship and escape while she still could. With that in mind she ordered her remaining minions to move all the food and treasure from Moriah-sama's ship to the one Luffy and his crew had arrived on, then fled outside to ensure everything got loaded up properly. She should have done this earlier!

* * *

Fox perched on the yard beside Cho and Beastie with Calla coiled around her shoulders and watched the troupe of zombies hurriedly loading more food and masses of treasure onto the Thousand Sunny. She wasn't entirely sure why they were doing so but she knew neither Luffy nor Nami would ever forgive her if they found out she had prevented them from acquiring extra food and treasure. As another crash shook Thriller bark, Fox began to suspect that the reason their ship was being loaded up with plunder was somebody on the island had decided that now was a good time to run away; not that she blamed them. She'd seen the gigantic zombie thrashing around the place and was glad to be as far away from that fight as possible. Her captain and crew were all still alive and kicking so far, so she was better off watching over the ship and waiting for them to return. Abandoning her responsibilities was not something she could justify unless someone was actually dying.

The assassin paused as a strange life-sign appeared out of nowhere, just at the top of the steps the zombies were bringing the crates down. This newcomer was a Devil Fruit User and very strong, but he also had a similar echoing quality to Franky that lead Fox to believe his body was only partly alive. She reflexively tightened her Colour of Concealment, pretending to be part of the rigging. This guy she could not fight. Ambush successfully perhaps, but not fight. He was too big, too strong and too much of an unknown. Unless…

The man turned, giving her a brief glimpse of bear ears on his hat and a bible clutched to his chest and Fox went very, very still. This was Bartholomew Kuma, the Pacifista Shichibukai. Her best bet right now was to stay put and hope he didn't see her. Carefully wrapping her power around Calla and Beastie, Fox slipped into her full Logia form and let herself drift upwards into the crow's nest. From here she could watch and not be seen.

She watched Nami arrive and confront Perona –her former prisoner's name– then saw Perona be hit by Bartholomew Kuma's Devil Fruit Ability and vanish completely from her senses in an instant. Not dead, just… gone. The zombies instantly fled, leaving Nami alone with the Shichibukai who as a pirate had been referred to as 'the Tyrant'.

"You're the Cat Thief," Kuma said, his voice deep and oddly carrying. "One of Straw Hat's nakama." He paused. "Is it true that Monkey D. Luffy has a brother?"

Nami quailed, but answered coherently enough: "Y-yes, he does. Ace, right? What about it?"

"I see… it was true," Kuma mused, turning away.

Fox had no idea what Nami answered as she had stopped paying attention all together: she now knew why Teach had betrayed Ace to the Marines. For Kuma to know that Ace considered Luffy a brother meant someone who had been close to the Hothead had told him. A person like a former comrade.

Marshall D. Teach had used Ace to become a Shichibukai. Fox felt a fire flare into life within her, a fire that had been banked and smouldering quietly ever since she was fifteen. A cold, psychotic smile played across her features as Kuma walked away; those who took her nakama from her would be destroyed; so she had sworn on the cooling bodies of her patients and fellow slaves.

"I'll be coming for you and yours, Blackbeard," she whispered softly. "The assassin you need to worry about is the one you don't know is after you…"

* * *

Oops... Fox finds out about Ace' defeat.


	52. Edge

**Edge**

Zoro liked the sword he had been given by the zombie samurai Ryouma: Shusui was a beautiful black blade and, like Wado Ichimonji, one of the twenty-one Great Grade Swords. However it had a temper that made it challenging to wield, much as Sandai Kitetsu's sheer bloodthirstiness needed a skilful hand to keep it in check. It was also considerably heavier than Yubashiri had been, though nowhere near as weighty as Zanchou was. Fox' Supreme Grade Sword was almost too heavy to be comfortably wielded as part of Zoro's Santoryuu, making certain moves feel clumsy and off-balance. It was better suited to her style, its strength and weight adding to her speed to land truly devastating hits.

Zanchou was unlike any sword he had ever held before or since. It did not have Wado Ichimonji's smooth willingness, Kitetsu's thirst or even Shusui's temper; instead it was calm, cold and implacable. Zanchou did not care what it cut, so long as all that stood against it was laid low. Zoro would never have dared to test it as he had Kitetsu; the Kairoseki blade would have bitten his arm off and mocked him for his foolishness. It was a Sword, and so it Cut. The wielder was as much at risk as the opponent unless they respected the blade. Zoro had to wonder how many greedy fools had lusted after Zanchou, only to fall when they underestimated its sheer power and were crushed by it. Like the tide it was named for, Zanchou just did not care. It was what it was and it would not submit to any swordsman; the wielder had to learn to work around it. Zoro himself had nearly lost a limb several times before he got enough of a feel for the katana that Fox let him practice by himself; in comparison Shusui was just a trifle hot-headed.

Zoro recognised it would take him a while to get used to Shusui and properly master the blade, but for now he would just have to cope. As the fight against the immense zombie giant Oars dragged on and on, the swordsman hoped Luffy would win back their shadows soon. He did not want them all to die here and leave Fox alone; he would not do that to her.

* * *

As the sun began to rise Fox felt a shiver down her spine. Her crew were still alive, even the walking skeleton she had found herself keeping an eye on, but for all the wanton destruction she had watched from her perch in the Thousand Sunny's crow's nest and the destruction of the gigantic zombie, Moriah was still undefeated. Absently petting Beastie who was curled up in her lap, the assassin stayed put. She had to trust. Even as she felt Moriah pull all his power into himself, de-animating every last zombie, she had to trust. The captain had left the Thousand Sunny in her care and she would not abandon her duty for anything less than death.

As Moriah fell there was a terrible instant in which Nami, Robin, Luffy and Zoro seemed to fade away, but they flickered back into life at once, battered and tired but undefeated. Fox sagged in relief; staying up all night and stressing about her nakama –here and elsewhere– was exhausting. Whoever had said that battle was the difficult part had never been left behind to fret.

They all seemed to be alright, but Kuma was still on Thriller Bark and Fox had no idea why. He had definitely been watching the fight and witnessed Moriah's defeat, so whatever he intended to do would come soon.

She hoped they all survived it, Luffy in particular: she was feeding him enough energy for his remarkable body to hold itself together until he recovered enough strength to wake up again and eat, but the connection was tenuous.

Then the Shichibukai attacked and Zoro stepped forward to battle him.

* * *

The shockwave shook the gigantic ship and the surrounding water; Fox was blasted across the crow's nest and into a wall, quickly summoning up the Colour of Armament to prevent one of Zoro's falling weights from caving her head in. As the Thousand Sunny rocked beneath her on the sudden waves she scrambled down the rigging, briefly detoured to dump Calla and Beastie on her bed and leapt off the ship onto Thriller Bark. Her crew **needed** her; Luffy would forgive it.

As she dashed across the unstable ground and scrambled over fallen stone she could feel Zoro's pain and resolve; he would not let his captain be taken away if he could help it. It was one of the things she loved about him, that unflinching resolve. He was going to die, she could feel that certainty in him, but Luffy would not.

Fox ran faster as she heard her lover scream. Bartholomew Kuma might be a cyborg and a Shichibukai, but nobody killed her loved ones and got away with it; her father certainly hadn't so why would anybody else?

As she closed on his location Fox felt searing, grinding agony wrenching Zoro's body, tearing his consciousness apart and dragging him further and further towards death. Forgoing secrecy altogether she let herself be pulled to his location by the tether binding their life-forces together, materialising just in front of him in time to see the remains of Kuma's Devil Fruit Power vanish into his body alongside all of Luffy's pain and fatigue. Sensing Zoro's soul waver, no longer held to his flesh by the life-force that was supposed to cradle it there, Fox abandoned all reason and dived into his torn and dying body after it.

_Nobody takes my loved ones away from me!  
_

* * *

Zoro blinked, then blinked again. "Am I dead?"

It seemed a reasonable question; his last memory was absorbing all of Luffy's pain and fatigue from the bubble Kuma had made it into, but now he was standing in a wilderness of torn earth, blasted treestumps and broken stone without a mark on him. His field of vision was also considerably wider than it should have been.

Lifting a hand to his head, Zoro discovered he also had far more limbs at his disposal that normal: two more pairs of arms. He also had two more faces sticking out of the sides of his head, meaning he now had the physical form of the Asura spirit projection he had used when he defeated Kaku of the CP9. Which seemed to fit in with the theory of his being dead. He didn't feel dead though and this certainly didn't look like heaven or hell. More like limbo.

Zoro got to his feet and noticed that he seemed to be mostly naked: his body from the waist down was covered in thick, smooth black hide that was lightly furred and made him look even more demonic. It also somehow concealed his groin; at least he hoped it did as otherwise his dangly bits had gone missing. He paused to consider that frightening possibility before discarding it: they didn't feel missing. They were just on the inside of his new body rather than the outside. His feet were more of an issue: he had claws on them. Tightly curved claws, thick and blunt like a dog's, being designed to enhance grip rather than aid in combat. The only item of actual clothing he had on was his harimaki, which had his three swords attached to it.

Whether he was dead or not, there was nothing interesting going on right here so he might as well go elsewhere. All he had to do was pick a direction.

It took a few false starts for Zoro to get used to walking around and translating what he saw in his much broader visual field into proper movements, but after picking a direction he walked in a mostly-straight line. He had picked this direction because of the faint tug he felt that way, like someone had caught a fishhook in his solar plexus and was trying to reel him in. Whatever was that way, be it friend or foe, he would deal with it when he got there.

As he walked the desolate landscape around him changed. Fissures gradually closed, broken trees melted away to reveal young saplings, the earth beneath his feet levelled out and a faint fuzz of new grass sprouted under his toes. Rocks standing here and there on the great plain seemed to soften, as though weathering in fast-forward and above his head he heard the faint cry of a bird. The grass around him grew higher, brushing first his ankles, then his calves and eventually his knees. Trees grew and reached towards the sky, placed only here and there in the wide expanse of green that seemed to go on forever.

Zoro found himself seeking out the wildlife of this strange place. The bird high above had been a crow, but something about its silhouette had been wrong. There had been a leopard in a tree a while back as well and he was sure he'd seen a bull, a pair of gorillas and what had looked like a phoenix. As he splashed through a shallow creek he saw a large crab and a tiger drinking at a pool just downstream, apparently oblivious of each-other.

Something about this wilderness was starting to niggle in the swordsman's mind; he _knew_ this place. It was familiar, right down to his bones. This, this place was _home_. Speeding up to a trot and barely raising an eyebrow at the dragon and hawk soaring overhead on the updrafts, Zoro made a beeline for the source of the now rather strong tugging feeling. Whatever that was it was not supposed to be here. He passed a rhino, a wolf and a bear, then a lion. He was getting closer.

He stopped at the edge of an impossibly deep crater that, unlike the rest of the landscape, had not been miraculously resorted: the walls were sheer and raw, showing bare clay at the top and torn rock lower down. It was not just one hole, Zoro noticed, but a larger pit with five smaller pits arrayed around the opposite side like a massive paw print.

A paw print. Bartholomew Kuma. How? More to the point, why, where and what the hell?

As he watched the main crater gradually filled with water all the way up to the top, spilling over into the smaller craters and causing new streams to trail across the plains away from it. Zoro frowned down at the newly-created lake; this was new. It wasn't that it shouldn't be here –he kinda liked it actually– but it wasn't familiar. The tugging feeling in his chest was centred on something down in the bottom of that bottomless pit. Or rather, something that had been down in that bottomless pit that was coming up to the surface. Zoro took several steps back and readied himself for an attack; never mind that it didn't feel hostile, this was _his_ place!

When it surfaced however Zoro's hands fell away from his blades in wonder.

It was Fox. No, it wasn't just Fox: it was Dracule 'Phantom Fox' Lisska, the Angel of Death and Daughter of the Sea. Her hair was a pale, luminous gold with white streaks and from the hips down she had the body of a sea snake: green scales and wavy lines identified it as being a Yuda, a massive serpent that was so fierce and poisonous it was outright avoided by Sea Kings. Unlike him she only had one pair of arms, but she did have two pairs of wings, broad and narrow like a sea bird and feathered with steel.

Then her eyes met his and everything went white.

* * *

I'm so mean, leaving you with a cliffhanger...


	53. Suspense

**Suspense **

The moment Sanji awoke to the fading sunlight of late afternoon he panicked. Where the hell was the shitty idiot swordsman? He couldn't believe the marimo had done that! Had he forgotten about Fox-chan? What the hell was it that went on in that green-furred head?!

"Where did that guy go?" he panted, staggering to his feet and dashing across the fallen chunks of wall, ignoring Luffy's miraculous return to health in his haste to find the swordsman. Had Kuma taken Zoro after all? He couldn't have, right?

"Over there!" he realised, spotting someone standing silhouetted against the trees with his back to the ruins. Hurrying closer, Sanji addressed the marimo directly:

"You freak me out… Oi! Where did that Shichibukai go?"

The swordsman didn't answer, not moving from his steady stance. Then Sanji noticed that there was someone kneeling in front of the swordsman and rushed closer before stopping dead as he took in the scene.

There was blood everywhere. Splattered across the ground in a six foot radius at _least_, like it had exploded from Zoro's body all in one go. And there was Fox, kneeling in front of him with her head pillowed against his solar plexus, tucked partly under his folded arms. Her right arm lay on top of his left, hand buried in the crook of his right elbow and her left was wrapped around his bicep. She was barely breathing, so still and pale she looked almost dead. Blood had dribbled down over her head and back from Zoro's wounds, painting brownish red lines over the bright floral designs of her bandanna and shirt. The swordsman looked worse, with wounds everywhere and what visible skin there was heavily bruised or pale as chalk. Unlike Fox, he didn't seem to be breathing at all.

"Why the heck is there so much blood?!" Sanji freaked. "Oi… are you still alive? Where did that guy go? What on earth happened here?"

"Nothing…" Zoro coughed, his eyes opening briefly before fluttering closed again. "Nothing at all!" he sagged forwards, chin hitting his collarbones and shoulders slumping. Sanji quickly wrapped an arm around the swordsman's shoulders to prevent him putting all his weight on Fox, who hadn't seemed to hear his loud outburst.

"Chopper! Chopper!" Sanji bellowed. "Get over here! I think Zoro's dying!"

* * *

Chopper was worried. When Sanji called him over he'd feared the worst and he'd been pretty much right to: Zoro had been taken to the very brink of death by his injuries and Fox was in a coma for no reason the reindeer could think of, the fingers of her right hand so tightly tangled in those of Zoro's left that there was no way of separating them. Now, a whole day after Moriah had been defeated, they had yet to wake up. Chopper had done all he could, cleaning and bandaging all of the swordsman's many wounds and getting Robin to bathe Fox and change her clothing, but neither had so much as stirred yet.

"Chopper!" Luffy called out, entering the ruins the reindeer had commandeered as a medical area with a large bundle on his head.

"We brought the things you asked for," Franky said, walking in behind Luffy through the hole in the wall with an even larger bundle.

"Oh thank-you," Chopper said distractedly, looking up from his patients.

"How are they?"

Chopper swallowed. "This is the first time I've seen so many wounds on Zoro's body. Really: he was so close to losing his life. That Fox was there and he was still this badly injured…" his voice trailed off. "I don't know, I really don't." He huffed, putting that thought aside. "Something must have happened when we were knocked out, something that not only put him in this condition but worried Fox badly enough that she left the Sunny to rush to his side."

"I can't believe that man just left like this," Robin said.

"It's weird how Luffy is surprisingly energetic too," Usopp mused thoughtfully.

"Just a bit," the rubberman agreed, still holding the massive bundle over his head. "I'm not even sure myself!"

Chopper ignored the two strangers who were dragged off by Sanji; he was more concerned by Fox' continued unconsciousness. He had noticed that as Zoro's vitals had gradually improved over the course of the day, so had hers. In fact, their heartbeats and breathing were perfectly synchronised. It was as though she had used her Devil Fruit Ability to merge the two of them into a single being and then sustained the swordsman, her heart beating and lungs breathing for him. Certainly Zoro's organs had been badly damaged by whatever had happened to him, but there had been none of the associated diffuse damage that came from a body trying to make use of damaged organs. Instead there was Fox, who was utterly unresponsive and almost dead without a mark on her. Zoro's gradual but definite improvement as the hours past convinced the reindeer that Fox had tied herself to Zoro like she had to the Merry, but much more deeply. As a result the swordsman was leeching her vitality to heal his many injuries before they killed him, but he needed so much healing her body could barely do more than continue to function.

Unfortunately there wasn't anything Chopper could do except hope for the best.

* * *

Fox could not move her body at all; this was what happened in a deep merge when she had to chase after her patient's soul and wrap herself around it to prevent it from getting away even as she reinforced their body and replenished their life-force enough that she didn't need to stay in that perilous place at the very edge of existence where reality was what you made of it. She had removed herself from Zoro's body as quickly as she could, but the damage was done: their lives were locked together now, a solid, permanent conduit joining their minds on both the conscious and subconscious level and marking a point of contact between their very souls.

As it was Fox could feel two hearts beating, two set of lungs breathing, two bodies straining to keep themselves alive after the grievous injuries Zoro had sustained. Her swordsman was completely dead to the outside world, leaving his mind open and wandering in barely coherent dreams in and out of her mind as well as his own, barely able to distinguish which thoughts were hers and which were his. Fox would have shut him out, except it would have also increased his recovery time and possibly sent him into shock as at the moment his body was convinced it had two hearts, four lungs, two brains and enough internal organs for the damage to one set to not be too much of an issue. Losing the functional set would likely cause his subconscious to panic and possibly kill him.

So, in order to distract herself from the feeling of intimate contact in parts of her being that were never meant to be explored by any save herself, Fox listened to what was going on around her: feasting, joy, celebration and music. Music that brought back memories of being both a small child and a grown woman in the arms of a laughing red-haired pirate and twirling around dozens of different bar rooms, island clearings and ships' decks as all around them familiar voices sang an old, much-loved pirate tune:

_Going to deliver Bink's sake_

_Following the sea breeze,_

_Riding on the waves_

_Far above the salty deeps,_

_The merry evening sun_

_Painting circles in the sky,_

_As the birds sing…_

Fox slipped away into dreams of memories of the smell of alcohol, red hair, warm arms and laughter, salty sea wind, the crisp sound of full sails and the ringing of steel on steel, vaguely aware as she tumbled from memory to dream and back again that the pirate with green hair didn't quite belong. Then the dreams changed and she was the one who didn't belong on peaceful islands with clean wooden dojos where boys fought with bokken and girls fell down stairs in the middle of the night and the roads never led to where it was you wanted to go.

* * *

A spot of exposition and a hint of past.


	54. Onwards

**Onwards**

When Zoro awoke it was to a disconcerting feeling of both having not enough and too many limbs, with what he did have being all in the wrong places. He also had a slight headache and the distinct impression of having remembered things that hadn't happened to him.

"Welcome back to the land of the living," he heard Fox say, but he also felt the vibration of air in his own throat and the movement of his own mouth. Perhaps it wasn't his mouth; but hadn't he had three at one point?

He was starting to worry about his sanity when he started losing feeling in his limbs until he could only feel one pair of arms, one pair of legs, one torso and one head with associated accessories. Carefully reaching up with his only remaining pair of hands Zoro ran his fingers over his face and head, all the way around the back, then looked down at himself.

"Where's the rest of me?" he asked helplessly, looking up and feeling a little bereft as he gazed into unhappy golden eyes.

"This is all of you there is, on the outside at least," Fox told him.

"Okay," Zoro accepted. His head felt fuzzy and thick, like it was full of fog. "Is there any sake?" Sake always helped. He accepted the bottle from Fox and as he did so his fingers brushed hers, bringing back the feeling of the whole body he'd just lost contact with. "Hey, why are you-" he paused. That wasn't the right thing to say; it was clearly Fox' body, not his. "Why do you feel like me?" he asked instead, which really wasn't very clear but she seemed to understand anyway.

"Remember Kuma?"

Yes, Zoro remembered: Devil Fruit User, Pacifista and somewhat honourable. He'd given Zoro Luffy's pain rather than take their captain away.

"He killed you."

Zoro blinked. "I'm not dead though," he pointed out. He hurt too much to be dead.

"I stopped you from leaving me," Fox said flatly. "We are very much stuck with each-other now; the only advantage I can see is that my father _definitely_ won't kill you. He may maim you though."

"You prevented me from dying," Zoro repeated, taking a large swig of sake. "I… is that why I remember being in my Asura form? And you with a Yuda tail?"

"Yes; those are the forms our souls take, as that is how we perceive ourselves," Fox explained. "You used up all your life-force absorbing Luffy's injuries so I trapped your soul as it left your body by snaring it with my own life-force, then infused myself into your body and healed it from within. Reality is much more fluid when you look at it from the other side." She sighed. "I got out as soon as your body was capable of functioning semi-independently but we were still merged mentally and spiritually for three whole days. You were wandering in and out of my mind like you owned the place and whenever we slept our dreams meandered all over the place with no regard for boundaries."

Zoro could remember some of that now; he knew intellectually he'd never met Red-Hair Shanks but the name now conjured up a distinctive laugh, a voice that meant safety and a cheerful face he would recognise in an instant.

"I'm walling you off right now," Fox went on, "But you'll have to learn to block me out as well or we'll get so tangled up we won't know where one finishes and the other begins. Here, have some lunch."

Zoro accepted the plate, his brain clearing further as he finished off the alcohol and got some food down his throat. "Is that why I was confused about how much body I have?" he asked.

"Yep; we've been practically one being for most of three days. You'll get used to it soon and your brain will get the hang on the fact we're only a complete entity on the inside," Fox told him, stroking the snake in her lap as it trilled happily. "Like how you can fly in your dreams, but know you can't in real life."

Zoro nodded carefully. "So, this is how it felt for you before," he said carefully, alluding to what she had told him about her life as a slave.

Fox bowed her head. "Similar. We are differently entangled as we are lovers, not just patient and healer. It is a more intimate connection, giving wider access. You will always be able to find me, like an Eternal Pose in your head, and we will never, ever be able to hide anything from each-other unless we agree not to pry. I can teach you how to keep me separate from your conscious mind and body memory but we will always share dreams now. That just can't be avoided." She curled in on herself, radiating guilt. "I'm so selfish."

Zoro put his empty plate aside and carefully dragged her into his lap, basking in the oddly sensual echoes that shivered across his skin when he touched her. "I'm sorry for dying on you," he said sincerely. "I never wanted to leave you behind. Thank-you for bringing me back." He kissed her.

The brief sensory overload knocked him flat on his back again, breathing heavily with Fox sprawled on top of him and just as dizzy.

"Whoah," she gasped, one hand running shakily through his hair. "We've got to do that again."

Zoro chuckled then winced as a brief pain ran up his side. "Is it always going to be that intense?"

"No idea," Fox admitted, voice slightly muffled as her face was buried in his neck. "Don't really care either way. You're still here and that's all that matters."

The swordsman wrapped his arms around his lover, holding her close. "Mine," he muttered into her hair. "All mine, body and soul." His grip tightened. "You're so beautiful, you know that?"

"Hm?"

"Inside as well as outside," Zoro clarified. "Your soul flies on bladed wings." He'd never seen anything so magnificent; if he hadn't already been in love with her before he definitely would be now, she was that wonderful.

"And yours prowls with eyes of flame, ever ready for battle," Fox told him, smiling against his skin. "Now let's see if you can stand up without tripping over your feet."

* * *

Fox sat quietly on the floor of hers and Zoro's cabin, Ace' hat in her lap. She'd missed the discussion about Ace' Vivre card, having been busy minding Calla, helping Zoro to learn how to keep their minds separate but adjacent and speeding his recovery as much as she dared. However she caught the tail-end of the conversation happening on deck when she got back from feeding her hatchling yet more fish that Luffy had decided against going to look for Ace. On hearing that she retired to her cabin before anyone noticed her tears, lifted the orange cowboy hat out of the box she was keeping it in and blindly petted the brim. Calla trilled worriedly at her, nuzzling her ear and jaw, and the assassin raised a hand to pet the baby snake.

"Fox?" Zoro pushed the door open. "Luffy wants us all on deck to toast Brook joining the crew." He paused, frowning. "Is that Ace' hat?"

Fox put the hat away and stood up. "Yes, it is," she said simply, wiping her eyes on her sleeve. "You said we're wanted on deck?"

Zoro caught her arm, the odd sensation of being two people at once blooming between them once more, though no longer as distracting as it was in the beginning. "Why is Luffy's brother's hat here?"

"He's in trouble and it got left behind," Fox said, her words flat and empty.

The swordsman frowned. "If he's anything like Luffy he's rather die than lose his hat."

"I'm keeping hold of it so I can give it back to him when I see him," Fox said. "Now, you came to get me?"

Zoro gave her a sceptical look. "We are going to discuss this later, okay? I can tell there's far more to the story than that."

Fox nodded, then plastered a faint smile on her face and went out on deck to toast 'Dead Bones' Brook, the Straw-Hat pirates new musician.

* * *

Things start to go wrong.


	55. Unsettled

**Unsettled**

Robin had learnt to trust her instincts to tell her when something was up and they were currently insisting that, although things hadn't gone wrong yet, there was a good chance it would happen in the immanent future. It was a faint sense of tension tickling the back of her neck, a culmination of dozens of tiny cues that added up to not quite right. And it was something to do with Fox. Actually, Robin suspected it had more to do with Lisska, daughter of Dracule Mihawk, than Fox the Straw-Hat pirate. Had she perhaps received some news that she would ordinarily have responded to, but couldn't due to being on the crew? Was there something someone on the crew had done that she didn't agree with? Was she just nervous about being close to home? Or was it just the constant close quarters getting to her? Fox was a far more solitary person than anyone else on the Thousand Sunny; she preferred to let things happen around her than actually participate and frequently retreated to her cabin or workshop when the crew got rowdy in the evenings. If Fox –Lisska– was anything like her father she likely felt smothered and stifled by being on a ship as small as the Sunny with people as loud and extrovert as the Straw-Hats.

She seemed to manage her nature well though: Fox could generally be found watching Zoro lift weights, sitting somewhere out of the way on deck with some sewing project or going through series after series of graceful martial arts stances in the aquarium bar. Fox had mentioned to Franky that the massive wrap-around fish tank reminded her of home, and she was generally there if she wasn't with Zoro or on deck. When Fox was training in the aquarium bar the rest of the crew tended to either avoid it or watch quietly; it was both incredibly graceful and highly intimidating to see the white-haired woman slowly flow through form after form without pause for hours on end. Not even the pitch and roll of the ship in bad weather could disrupt her practice sessions; she only stopped for meals or if all hands were called on deck to change the sails.

Robin had watched Fox practice as the Sunny was tossed by serpent currents, her grace unhindered by the irregular bounce and roll of the ship around her; it led the archaeologist to wonder why the younger woman was practicing so hard. Was she worried about her reception when she met her mother on Sabaody? Or was there something else?

Robin suspected it was something else, but had no proof. Fox talked most to Zoro, who despite being friendly with the archaeologist would never share his lover's secrets so lightly. Pinning down the woman herself for a heart-to-heart was practically impossible and the only other person Fox chatted to was Sanji, who held all females sacred and would not share secrets one such goddess had asked him to keep to himself.

The archaeologist put together what she knew: Fox had started behaving slightly off when Beastie the sea iguana came on board, back when she'd been left to watch over the ship on Thriller Bark. The oddness had increased after she and Zoro woke and only gotten worse the more time passed. Some of it was just the incredible creepiness that was Fox and Zoro's newfound reciprocal awareness, but not all. If it hadn't been blatantly obvious that assassin and swordsman were head over heels in love with each-other Robin would have thought Fox was pining after someone.

* * *

When the Red Line finally came into view ahead of them, Zoro wrapped an arm around Fox' waist and leant his head against her shoulder, enjoying the way he could feel her blood under her skin and the warmth suffusing her muscles after her six hour workout in the bar on the deck level. He knew the Red Line was a place that roused incredibly conflicting feelings in his lover's heart: far below them on the sea bed was Fishman Island, the place she still called home, but above them was Mariejois, where Fox had been beaten, broken and shattered then forged anew in blood and death and vengeance. Then there were her concerns regarding Ace; Zoro had seen the newspaper article one of Fox' contacts had sent her regarding Fire-Fist's arrest and had wanted to show it to the captain at once, but Fox had talked him out of it. She'd pointed out that Luffy had known Ace was in some kind of trouble but decided against helping him without even trying to find out more: a poor decision all round. She'd reassured the swordsman that there were plenty of people who'd be helping Ace –Fox included– even if Luffy didn't find out what was going on until the last minute.

"There are a lot of very scary people who would move mountains for the Hothead," she told him, "Even if he never asked them to. I'm doing all I can making sure everybody who would want to help knows and getting people in touch with each-other, but so long as he's in Impel Down it really isn't practical to mount a rescue." She paused. "Not that we _couldn't_, of course, but doing so would limit the number of people who could join in."

Reassured that Luffy's brother didn't actually need the Straw-Hats to rush to his rescue just yet, Zoro had left his captain to his ignorance. It didn't feel right, but he agreed with Fox that making mistakes was part of learning. As soon as Nami got her hands on a newspaper she would find out about Ace' impending execution, so it wasn't like they would be delaying for very long.

* * *

Luffy knew Fox wasn't happy about his decision not to try and rescue Ace, probably because Ace was Fox' nakama as well and she didn't like the idea of him being in danger without someone sensible to bail him out. He had considered telling her she could borrow the Vivre Card and go after Ace by herself, but seeing how she and Zoro were now having entire conversations almost without moving a muscle and occasionally behaving like one person split between two bodies the rubberman had decided against it. If Fox went Zoro would be unbalanced by her absence and Fox would be off-balance as well, which was not a good way to be when you were trying to rescue someone. If Ace was really in trouble they would have heard about it by now.

* * *

In which numerous poor decisions are made and people fail to communicate.


	56. Echo

**Echo**

"Fox," Nami asked as the miniature submarine with Luffy, Robin and Brook in it started to head towards the surface, "How do you get to Fishman Island?"

"Me personally or people generally?" Fox asked idly, fiddling with the collar of the haori she was wearing this morning; "Because I personally would just take Swift Hunter."

"People generally," Nami clarified, irritated but trying not to show it.

"People generally take their ship to Sabaody, get it coated then gamble their lives on the skill of the mechanic who did the coating," Fox told her. "A coated ship sinks under the right circumstances, the coating itself inflating into a bubble that protects both the vessel and the people on it from the pressure of the deep sea. However you need to be very careful in picking the mechanic doing the coating as if that person makes even the smallest mistake the bubble pops and everyone on board dies. Well, everyone except me, but lying at the bottom of the sea on my own until I get rescued does not appeal."

"So how do we get to Sabaody?" the navigator asked as the shark-shaped submarine reached the water's surface and the hatch opened.

"It's no use; we can't even see the bottom of the sea," Luffy said. "I know there's got to be a Fishman Island since Fox is from there, but where is it?"

"Yohoho, that's the first time I've ridden in a submarine," Brook commented.

Then the sea monster that had been hassling the submarine surfaced as well. Luffy punched it, making it spit up a mermaid –which landed on an ecstatic Sanji– and a very strange starfish. Nami would have been more amazed by the girl with the fishy tail had she not spent several months sailing with Fox, who could occasionally be coaxed into telling stories about her finned family. The mermaid thanked them for saving her from being digested by the Sea Bunny, mentioning in passing that this was about the twentieth time she had been eaten, and introduced herself as Keimi, and offered them Takoyaki. Nami made a point of ignoring Sanji's ridiculous outburst, being more interested in Fox' reaction to the ditzy green-haired girl who had landed on board.

Fox was just watching quietly, her arms folded. She hadn't hurried back into the cabin for her sunglasses and her black cowboy hat was hanging down her back. She didn't have a scarf around her neck either, meaning she was barely disguised at all. She didn't seem too worried about being recognised though and had a faint, fond smile on her face. Then the starfish introduced itself and the navigator was distracted from her study.

* * *

After Keimi's call to her friend resulted in the unfortunate mermaid's discovery that said friend had been taken prisoner by slavers, Fox decided to intervene just as Luffy –whose one-track mind was rather hard to distract– asked about the takoyaki they'd been offered. She hadn't known it was her captain's favourite food.

"We'd be glad to help you, Keimi-chan," the white-haired woman said firmly, placing a hand on the worried girl's shoulder. "Nobody deserves to be enslaved."

Keimi looked up at Fox in gratitude, then face-vaulted. "Fox-chin! I'm so sorry I didn't recognise you earlier! You'll help me? But you must be so busy I couldn't possibly-"

Fox placed a hand over the girl's mouth. "You're babbling. Calm down; I'm not that busy and helping a fishman is no trouble at all. Besides, I'm sure you know our family policy on slavers, Keimi-chan?"

Keimi brightened. "Oh, thank-you!" she hugged Fox tightly around the waist.

"Who's this Hacchin anyway?" Luffy asked.

"He runs the takoyaki shop where I work! We make the tastiest takoyaki in the world!" Keimi told him, releasing Fox. Luffy's eyes bugged out.

"We have to save him!" the rubberman roared. "We're rescuing the takoyaki if we die in the process!"

"Yeah!" Franky, Usopp, Brook and Sanji roared back enthusiastically.

"I'll call us up a guide then," Fox said as Nami sat next to the little mermaid so as to coax more information out of the rather naïve girl. Leaning over the railing Fox cast around for a decent-sized fish, one that would both know the way to Grove 44 and not be frightened of the area's very large flying fish. Having found a suitable target Fox called out to it, pitching her voice in a way only mermaids and mermen could. Well, merfolk and her uncle Jinbe, but he had merfolk heritage and it could emerge in odd ways even several generations down the line.

As the conger eel poked its head out of the water Keimi squealed in shock; Fox ignored her, instead asking the immense but rather pleasant fish if in could lead then to Grove 44 of the Saboady Archipelago. It agreed after a suitable pause for thought, then slid itself under the Sunny and carried the entire ship off in a westerly direction.

"You can talk to fish?" Nami asked, utterly delighted by the revelation. "I completely forgot you could do that!"

"All mermaids can talk to fish," Keimi revealed. "I can't get the bigger ones to listen to me though." The green-haired girl shot a glance at Fox. "Red Line Conger Eels are the largest in the world! They even eat whole ships sometimes!"

"Not on purpose," Fox defended their guide. "They only eat fish and other marine life. They're more likely to absent-mindedly gobble down merfolk and fishmen than eat ships."

Keimi paled slightly.

"A little more tact perhaps Fox?" Sanji pleaded.

* * *

Zoro scrambled out of the crow's nest as the ship jerked and started moving with purpose. He was making pretty good progress at keeping himself out of his lover's conscious mind, but the odd eddies of emotion and subconscious assessment of her surroundings were much harder to avoid, as he relied on his own instincts too much to risk blocking them out. As it was he was gradually getting used to being in two minds about things and learning what to heed and what to ignore. It might be like how recovering from amnesia might feel: all those instincts he wasn't sure what to do with as they didn't fit in with what his thought his body could do. Time was helping him filter out what was his –he knew for example that the occasional urge to throw knives in certain people's general direction so they _stopped bleating_ had nothing to do with him at all– but it was slow going. A lot of the ways she responded he was interested in keeping track of, such as her automatic cataloguing of what in her vicinity could be used as a weapon –he hadn't known there were so many ways to kill people with spoons– and her skill in assessing opponents. Zoro was good, but nowhere near that good. Every time she looked at any living thing she spontaneously catalogued their stance, build, manner and a whole host of other tiny details that added up to a workable profile of their combat ability. Her subconscious then went on to detail ways of subduing or outright killing whatever she was looking at depending on how she wanted to appear to potential observers. Zoro had worked hard at locking that last bit out: he fought completely differently to Fox and confusion was fatal. If he tried to do something she would do, even for a split second, he would send himself off-balance and possibly get killed.

"Setting off are we?" he asked as he landed on deck. "Someone finally asked Fox how to get to Fishman Island?"

"Something like that," Luffy admitted cheerfully. "Check it out Zoro! It's Keimi the mermaid! A real mermaid with a tail! Isn't it cool!"

"Hello there!" the young-looking girl with untidy green hair and a multicoloured tail said, waving at him from next to the captain.

"First time for everything," the swordsman noted absently before glancing around for Fox' precise location and ambling over to lean on the railing next to her. Looking down he saw that the Sunny was actually being carried by a massive eel.

"Friend of yours?" he asked his lover lightly.

"Just a passing stranger willing to offer assistance," Fox demurred, glancing over at him and taking in the sweat and the towel hanging around his neck. "You look yummy," she added a little superfluously; he could feel her increase in interest echoing down the connection. However whatever might have eventuated died abruptly as the odd starfish started talking about the gang who had kidnapped Keimi's friend to sell and how there were many more such gangs in the archipelago.

Zoro wrapped an arm around her waist as her emotions roiled unpleasantly, probably reliving her own experience with such people. He also noticed an odd coincidence in Keimi's friend's name:

"You say he's an octopus and he's called Hachi," the swordsman said aloud, guiding Fox over to the small table and serving them both drinks. "Kinda reminds me of an idiot fishman we ran into once…" Back in Arlong Park.

"Yeah," Sanji agreed from where he was perched on the banisters leading to the upper deck. "If it's him I wouldn't want to save him. Not that it could be, really…"

* * *

I'm so sick I can barely write. It's making me grumpy as I have the whole Saboady arc and a little beyond all lined up in my mind but can't sit in front of the computer to type without my head hurting. Bleah.


	57. Reflection

**Reflection**

As the Thousand Sunny approached the Flying Fish Riders' base Fox briefly vanished into her cabin and came back out with Calla around her shoulders and a wicked-looking compound bow in one hand.

"You can fire that thing?" Zoro had to ask, taking in the sheer tension the weapon was under. Fox smirked, knocked an arrow and pulled the bowstring smoothly back until the arrow's fletching was level with her ear. The taunt bowstring hummed eagerly for an instant and then she let fly, the arrow spiralling through the air with a distant whine. Zoro was about to ask why she'd wasted a shot when there was a scream from above and a very large flying fish plummeted down into the sea, familiar fletching just visible sticking out of one eye.

"Nice shot," Usopp complemented her.

The flying fish riders only made the one pass before swiftly vanishing over the horizon, possibly due Fox' swift dispatching of one of their mounts. The two still mounted thugs had briefly swept past to pick up the one in the water; their conger eel guide swiftly snapped up the dying fish and swallowed it whole. Luffy was a bit cross about that but soon cheered up when he remembered they were rescuing a takoyaki chef. Besides, as Fox pointed out, there were more flying fish where that one came from.

As the rest of the crew discussed how they might deal with such nimble aerial attacks Zoro sat quietly, contemplating the situation. On the one hand he was almost fully healed from his injuries at Thriller Bark, Fox having expended a great deal of time and energy putting him back together. On the other, the conflicting signals he got when he tried to fight were slowing him down; the real reason both he and Fox had been training like crazy during the past week was to reacquaint themselves with their individual capabilities and limits. Lifting weights and practicing stances just wasn't enough; he needed a real fight so he could show himself why he desperately needed to get his act together. Besides, it wasn't like most of his moves were the kind of thing he could really practice in the crow's nest gym: they were too destructive.

"We need to do some joint training," Fox said quietly, sitting down beside him with the bow leaning against her thigh.

Zoro accepted the suggestion without hesitation; she was the one with the most experience of their current situation after all. "Where did you get that monster?" he asked instead, nodding at the bow. "I doubt you learnt that from your parents." Or her Shishou, but Zoro knew better than to speak of the man who had moulded a frightened child into a deadly killer.

"Sako, actually," Fox told him. "He felt I should know my way around a weapon that I could hunt with."

Zoro considered it; it wasn't a bad idea actually. Hunting with swords was interesting, but not all that much fun. Mostly he just blundered about until he found something that attacked him and then he killed it and, if it looked edible, cooked and ate it. He could forage well enough, but hunting wasn't his thing. "He teach you?"

"Goodness no; Sako's an axe fighter. Completely useless with a bow, though he's a crack shot with a sling," Fox went on, her mood brightening briefly. "His wife taught me."

"Wait; he's married? I thought you two…" Zoro trailed off.

"He wasn't married when I first met him, but he did get married not long afterwards; just before I left, in fact," Fox said, smiling a little wistfully. "They taught me to shoot the next time I visited."

"Didn't she mind? About you and, well," Zoro wasn't sure how to put it. Amusement bubbled along their connection.

"Zoro, you're forgetting that Sako and his people are convinced I'm a deity. Sako's wife is incredibly proud of what her husband did for me; it's part of what made her petition her father to let her marry him. The people of Mystoria see me as being several steps above them, so why should they expect me to conform to their social norms? As far as they are concerned I transcend them. Sako is no great leader but he's a national hero, a bit of a mystic and a very dedicated acolyte of, well, me." Fox made a face. "I don't like being worshipped very much but I just can't make them stop! It's frustrating sometimes."

The swordsman patted her shoulder as the Flying Fish Riders' base came into view ahead and the conger eel slipped out from under the keel. "I know you far too well to ever think you might be a deity; no deity would drool in their sleep."

Fox glared at him. "You wouldn't care even if I was a goddess," she pointed out tartly, "it wouldn't stop you from having your wicked way with me at every available opportunity."

Zoro smirked. It was true; why deny it?

* * *

As Franky pointed out to Keimi and Pappung the starfish that their friend hanging suspended in a cage in the middle of the apparently deserted base was probably a trap –how naïve could you get?– Fox nudged Zoro. As her hand brushed against his skin he let his mental barriers thin slightly so he could see what she wanted to show him and received a complex parcel of images and words. It unfolded swiftly within his mind, rapid flashes of insight and calculation that when put together revealed that his lover and other half felt this would be a perfect place for them to spar together without worrying about the consequences of damaging anything. Sending her back his agreement, Zoro then turned his attention to the imprisoned octopus fishman. Something really wasn't right there…

Sanji then tricked the captive into revealing that he was indeed Hatchan, formerly of the Arlong Pirates that had so oppressed Nami's home.

"So wait, that takoyaki seller 'Hacchin' was you all along?!" Luffy bellowed. "That crazy octo-Hachi from Arlong's crew?! Like hell we'd come and save a man like you, dumbass!" He paused, apparently deeply torn. "But wait! Ah… your takoyaki… is it really that good?!"

"Oh, come on!" Sanji grumbled. "Getting caught between your appetite and your reason?!"

"Oh, for the love of…" Zoro grumbled at the farce playing out.

"You guys! Were you really Hacchin's friends all along?" the oblivious mermaid asked brightly. The swordsman turned to glare at the greenette:

"We ain't his friends!"

Fox stepped forward to put a hand on the distressed mermaid's shoulder. "Just because he made some poor decisions in the past does not mean we shouldn't rescue him," she said firmly, a hint of steel in her tone. "You can always beat him up later if you so wish," she added quietly to the swordsman. She then walked forward and caught Luffy's shoulder, turning him around so she could look him in the eye:

"Fox?" the rubberman asked, apparently seeing something in her face that clued him in to the importance of the situation.

"Captain, Fox _will_ rescue Octopus, even if Captain does not wish it," she said firmly, slipping into her less balanced persona as a wave of fury-pain-frustration rocked Zoro from across the front deck. "Fox cannot stand by and allow another to be sold into slavery, Fox _cannot!_" She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "Captain can beat Octopus up later or kill him if Captain pleases; _anything_ is better than being sold."

Keimi was watching the interaction with wide, frightened eyes, Pappung hiding behind her tail; Sanji's cigarette had dropped out of his mouth to smoulder unheeded on the deck; Nami had gone white, clearly having put the pieces together; Usopp looked confused and Luffy was completely serious, looking Fox dead in the eye.

"Keimi! You should just go home! This is a trap!" drifted over from the suspended cage.

"Okay," Luffy agreed, still serious, "but Nami gets to decide what we do afterwards."

Fox slumped slightly and bowed. "Fox is very grateful." Luffy dragged her upright:

"It's okay to ask when you want things: how else am I gonna know what to do?" he pointed out with startling frankness.

The white-haired woman blushed and Zoro felt her embarrassment. "Fox apologises. Fox is not used to being around people who are interested."

"Your family doesn't care?" Sanji inquired, lighting a new cigarette. Fox turned to glance at him.

"Family doesn't need to ask; family knows Fox will do as she pleases and are happy to help should Fox need it, but Fox has a captain now and is not so free anymore."

There was a splash; Zoro turned just in time to see that the ditzy mermaid had decided they were taking too long –or the conversation had made her too nervous to stick around– and leapt overboard to save her friend. She and her starfish were instantly caught by three fishmen, who emerged to gloat over their prize.

"Ngyuu!" Hatchi shouted. "Keimi! Pappuang! I told you not to!"

"Well I guess there's no helping it then," Luffy said brightly, his eyes briefly turning into takoyaki before he leapt into action.

* * *

Things go a little differently. Thanks to everyone who sent their sympathies; being ill is shitty, as Sanji would say.


	58. Double

**Double**

Just as Zoro was about to jump onto the suspended cage and let the octopus out, his mind decided it was a perfect moment to forget how many legs he had. His brief stumble was corrected by Fox, who wrapped her hand around his right wrist and abruptly restored his awareness of where everything was.

"We'll have to do this together," she said quickly, hopping up beside the figurehead next to him. "Only way to make sure there are no relapses."

Zoro had fought the CP9 while handcuffed to Usopp; having Fox hanging onto one wrist was no hindrance at all.

After freeing Hachi and taking out a Flying Fish Rider who tried to attack the fishman during his emotional reunion with Keimi and Pappuang Zoro closed his eyes and tried a few quick moves, Fox flowing behind him. She had been right; training like this would really help. He already could feel things falling into place inside his head, his body memory peeling away from hers into two separate systems, just like fighting with two swords: one hand did one thing, the other did another but the overall result was smooth and seamless. Now he knew what it was they needed to do, getting back up to speed would be fairly easy.

Then Brooke landed on the raised jetty, panting and Zoro returned his attention to the fight. With Fox having to keep hold of him the Straw-Hats were effectively short a capable and independent fighter, but they would manage. It wasn't like these guys were even remotely challenging.

* * *

Zoro had been vastly amused that their enemy had looked exactly like Sanji's unfortunate bounty poster; even Fox had thought it was funny. However after the dumbass cook rearranged Iron Mask Duval's face the swordsman took advantage of the chaos to drag Fox away from a few minutes and practice moving across the ruined buildings. With enough open space to move properly and no need to worry about smashing things –it wasn't like these idiots would notice, considering how banged up their hideout was after being hit by the Gaon Cannon– Zoro was soon feeling much more certain of his abilities and limits. Not completely sure yet, as he would have to practice by himself to make sure he could manage without his lover hanging onto him in a fight, but much, much better than he had been. He'd been starting to worry that he might become a liability for Luffy, which the swordsman could not have stood for.

However all too soon it was time to leave, so Luffy agreed to give Hachi, Keimi and Pappuang a lift back to their floating takoyaki stand, Nami having agreed with her captain that free food was all that she wanted from the fishman. According to Nami, Hatchan was 'harmless', which fitted in quite well with Zoro's memories of the six-armed idiot. During the meal provided by the newly liberated octopus Zoro stayed on board the Sunny with Robin, Franky and Fox, partaking heavily of the barrel of Sake the swordsman had helped Fox to 'liberate' from the Flying Fish Riders.

"Zoro?" Robin asked, partway through the meal.

"Hm?"

"Had you noticed that half the time you put your takoyaki in Fox' mouth?" Zoro paused; had he been doing that?

Franky chuckled. "Well Fox seems to have the same problem so it evens out, right?"

Fox shrugged. "Eating is generally one of the last things to straighten out. At least we're starting to get the hang of fighting now."

"Did you have this problem before?" Zoro asked, noticing this time that is was Fox' chopsticks rather than his own lifting a takoyaki ball to his mouth. Not that it stopped him from eating it.

Fox shook her head. "I was a dancer, maidservant and healer before; I'd never actually killed anyone. It was fairly easy to separate myself out from the fighters as I had no practical experience outside of training. This is much trickier, but we are making decent progress." Her next takoyaki ball went into her own mouth. "We need more practice, but seeing as Sabaody is just around the corner it will have to wait until after I've introduced you to my mother."

Zoro froze. "You want me to meet your mother?"

Fox glanced up at him. "Well we could look for my father instead if you preferred…"

"No, I mean, why?"

Fox stared at him. "We are going to be like this for the rest of our lives, Zoro," she said gently. "I want my family to meet the man who made me go back on my decision to never, ever do anything this dumb ever again. Besides, it's take her to see you or get hunted down by her one dark night and if we make her do that she'll be angry."

"What is your mother like?" Robin asked, breaking up the argument before it could really get started.

Fox grinned. "Not at all the normal overprotective parent: she's always on my case to lighten up and enjoy life more. Very laid back, but strong regardless; strong enough to be a Shichibukai but she turned it down."

"She's a pirate?"

"No: the Marines have no evidence whatsoever of her ever breaking the law; she just beats up the pirates who try to start a fight on her property," Fox said mischievously. "Mother just happens to run a very nice tea house near the Marine base on the archipelago and another, rather rowdier one in the lawless area; she's just a simple business owner trying to get by."

"And I'm an angel; see my feathery wings?" Zoro muttered in patent disbelief. Fox giggled.

"What does she look like?" Robin asked. "And I'm not sure you ever mentioned her name."

"Mother's name is Pearl," Fox told her. "She's a little bit less than seven foot tall with wavy, navy blue hair and black eyes. She's usually smiling and likes to wear kimono. She's also very, very beautiful." The white-haired woman sighed. "She also has no respect whatsoever for social conventions, so prepare to be embarrassed."

"No respect how exactly?" Franky asked.

"The first thing she's likely to ask me on meeting you is how good you are in bed," Fox said flatly, "or else demand to know why I only have _one_ lover."

Zoro choked on his sake.

* * *

Yep, Pearl's all kinds of outrageous... *coff* *croak*


	59. Family

**Family**

To be perfectly honest, Ace had thought he was dead when the Burrowing Hagfish emerged from the cell wall next to him. The jawless eels were a real menace on the sea floor: their acidic saliva ate through everything, so they were a serious risk to any ship passing through Fishman Island. They were also scavengers, eating everything they came across including stone and steel. Ace hadn't been in Impel Down for very long but he'd already heard the horror stories of prisoners who'd had one crawl through their cell and been eaten alive. What made Burrowing Hagfish so dangerous was not their acidic saliva, but the incredibly viscous slime they secreted when they felt threatened. The hagfish could move through it easily, but to any other living thing it may as well have been wet cement. Added to their ability to extrude many hundreds of times their own body mass of the gloop in a matter of seconds, Burrowing Hagfish were a serious problem for anything trying to survive on the seabed. The wardens however didn't care if a few prisoners got eaten; it kept morale down and the hagfish automatically closed their burrows behind them so the prison never sprung a leak.

However instead of eating him as the inmates in the cell opposite were screaming about, the four foot hagfish tried to eat the chain attaching his left arm to the wall. It failed, the chain being Kairoseki and practically indestructible, so instead it ate the wall around where the chain was attached. Ace' left arm dropped; he pulled it into his lap so as to avoid getting dissolved.

"Oi! Fire Fist!" one of the other inmates shouted. "How'd ya train that fish?!"

Ace ignored them, instead keeping his eyes on his new cellmate as it wriggled closer, curling up on itself just inches from the pirate's knees and shrinking down into a scroll. "Fox?" he breathed, barely able to believe it. Of all the possible people who might be able to get a message into Impel Down, Fox had not even been on his list. Carefully he lifted the scroll into his lap and opened the seal, shaking out the coiled paper so he could read what she had written.

_Hothead,_

_You moron! Have you any idea how worried I was when Beastie brought me your hat?!_

Oh, Beastie was alright! And so was his hat! He'd worried the prison wardens might have confiscated it, along with his knife.

_Looking after your crazy baby brother is enough of a challenge without having to bail you out as well. Oh, and don't even __**think**__ of saying something stupid like "I'm not worth it," or "don't risk yourself for me," you twit! You're my nakama and I'm going to rescue you if I have to kill every last marine on the planet!_

_Note that I didn't say, "even if I die". I have no intention of dying so you don't get to either, d'you hear me Portgas D. Ace? __**No dying!**__ I've sent letters to everyone who knows you and cares about your wellbeing so there's a good chance someone will try and break you out before I make my move. Probably your big sis, since she's the only one who can move through the Calm Belt without being eaten. She'll likely rip you a new one for not calling for help while you had the chance _–_idiot! That stupid pride of yours will get you killed and then where will we be!_– _but I'm sure you'll survive it. _

_I repeat, you do not get to die! How would you feel if any of your family went and died on you? Not good, hm? Well that's how we feel too, so suck it up and get used to it, mister damsel-in distress!_

_See you soon,_

_Limpet._

_P.S. Bow to my mad skills, peon!_

The letter hissed, then burst into flame for an instant and fell to the floor as so much ash. Ace sat utterly still for several seconds. Then, just as his fellow prisoners started to think he'd been eaten after all, Ace started to wheeze. The wheezing turned into deranged giggles, then into full-blown mad, manic laughter. He laughed and laughed and laughed, the sound echoing off the stone and multiplying as it rang around the lowest level of the most secure gaol on the planet. He ignored the fearful cries of "He's snapped!" and "Fire Fist's lost it!" and clutched his stomach helplessly, tears running down his cheeks as the laughter faded into hiccups and sobs.

Fox had always been good at snapping him out of what she called his 'pity parties'; he had almost been able to hear her exasperated voice snarking at him as he read her words. Leaning his head back against the wall, Ace smiled peacefully. What would be, would be. But if he got a chance to make a run for it, he would say the magic words and scarper.

Though when he was out of this mess he really would have to coax Fox into telling him how exactly she'd managed to make paper that self-destructed when you finished reading what was written on it, not to mention prank her something terrible for calling him both a peon and a damsel in distress. He was Portgas D. Ace, dammit! Not some pansy!

* * *

Zoro had been expecting Fox to take a while picking an outfit to wear on Sabaody, but he hadn't expected her to take quite this long. He himself didn't exactly have much choice in what to wear; he only had one shirt left that wasn't either burnt, missing pieces or neatly darned in several places. Fox however had explained that here she was better off dressing as her father's daughter: her mother was quietly infamous for having had a fling with the Shichibukai back in the day and trying to hide her identity would only make it more likely that she would expose it. Here on Sabaody Dracule Lisska was known for her neutrality regarding pirates, so being seen with Zoro wouldn't be a problem.

Besides, it wasn't like Aokiji hadn't seen her with the Straw-Hats before.

Then the cabin door opened and Zoro's jaw dropped slightly. He'd known she would pull out the stops but he hadn't expected anything like this.

Fox had her hair piled up on the back of her head with long bangs looping down the sides of her face and shoulders to join the elegant knot at her crown, held in place with about a dozen hair sticks, all of which were probably very, very sharp. She had no makeup on –not that she needed it– and wore a fabulous kimono in pale blue with long, wide sleeves and decorated with thousands of silvery bubbles. The kimono was slightly translucent, hinting at the indigo hiyoku beneath it that ended halfway down her calves. Her collar was wide but not scandalously so, her obi neat but extravagant and on her right shoulder was the shikom-zue umbrella she'd somehow conned out of Admiral Aokiji. Calla was coiled loosely around her throat like a highly poisonous scarf and Zoro knew there would be more knives hidden in her clothing that seemed feasible, but that was just how she was.

"You look stunning," he admitted.

"Then let's get going, shall we?" Fox told him with a smile. "Remember to call me Lisska from now on, though."

Zoro scoffed; as if he'd forget!

* * *

As her mother's main tea house was in grove twenty two, Fox and Zoro had to pass through more than half of the lawless area to reach it. Not that the incognito assassin minded; she and Zoro beat up any bounty hunters trying to bring him in with ridiculous ease and there were plenty of shops along the way to keep them both interested. Fox had warned Zoro against getting in the way of the 'goldfish people' as she privately termed the Tenryuubito, though she wasn't certain he'd paid attention. Or maybe he hadn't cared despite her warning him they could call on an admiral if they wanted to.

Fox had paused in a shop selling silk thread in grove twenty four and was just paying when she felt her swordsman's killing intent spike just around the corner. Suddenly fearing the worst, Fox shoved her purchases into her obi and hurried towards the ruckus, arriving on the scene just as violence faded into puzzlement down the connection. Then Fox saw the Tenryuubito and instantly wrapped her Colour of Concealment around her like a cloak. While the white-haired woman acknowledged the futility of openly opposing the World Nobles, that did not mean she would allow them to soil her skin with their filthy eyes.

Walking calmly through the space the fat goldfish had created by his presence Fox stopped at her lover's side and waited for the noble to move on.

* * *

"Thanks for looking out for my idiot," Said a voice right by Jewelry Bonney's ear just as she was about to lay into Pirate Hunter Zoro, making the female captain almost jump out of her skin. The pink-haired pirate darted away from the speaker and spun around.

"Wha?"

It was a very tall woman with white hair and piercing golden eyes in a floaty blue kimono with an umbrella balanced on her right shoulder. The woman smiled, the expression friendly with an undercurrent of cool fearlessness: Bonney suddenly _knew_ this was a big player, never mind that she'd never seen or heard of the woman before.

"I said thank-you," the woman repeated before turning to the Pirate Hunter and handing him a handkerchief. "Honestly Zoro, I let go of you for all of ten seconds and you try to get yourself pulped again. Should I be worried about your masochistic streak?"

"He couldn't have laid a finger on me, the fat bastard," the swordsman grumbled, wiping his face. The woman sighed, folded her umbrella and thwacked the Pirate Hunter across the back of the head with it.

"Were you even listening when I told you the Noble Goldfish could summon an admiral on a whim?" she asked, her tone suggesting interest while her body language screamed threat. The green-haired man wisely did not answer, taking a sudden interest in the ground. "I thought as much." The woman rolled her eyes and turned back to Bonney. "My name's Dracule Lisska; thanks for sticking your neck out, Jewelry Bonney."

Bonney shook the hand, feeling slightly shocky. "_Dracule_ Lisska? As in..?"

The woman –Lisska– smiled. "Yes, as in my father. Now I need to introduce my lover here to my mother before said father catches wind of him, so we'll be on our way."

"What about that guy?" the Pirate Hunter asked, pointing at the man the World Noble had shot. Lisska sighed.

"Bring him along; one of mother's girls can fix him." She turned to meet the eyes on the pirates across the street. "Oh, gentlemen?"

Capone Beige, Urouge, Basil Hawkins and Scratchman Apoo all gave the deadly lady their attention.

"My mother runs a very discreet teahouse in grove twenty-two, so I'm sure you would all be welcome provided you mind your manners and leave your differences at the door." Lisska smiled, sweet as cyanide. "As Madame Pearl has been known to geld people who try to start fights, I'm sure you can keep your egos in check for that long, hm?" She turned and left, umbrella twirling as the swordsman beside her carried the wounded man away down the road.

Jewelry Bonney swallowed hard. _That_ was Roronoa Zoro's lover? The man _had_ to be insane, sleeping with the daughter of someone like Hawk-Eyes!

* * *

I've missed writing Ace.


	60. Faces

**Faces**

Since Zoro had a wounded man slung over one shoulder Fox deemed it best to enter her mother's teahouse through the back door. Well, the very back door of the tea house complex, as it wasn't really just one building. Said door was down in the edge of the roots holding up grove twenty two, on the end of a jetty and scant feet above the waterline. Fox banged on the door, opened it and dragged the swordsman inside, then shut it behind them. As she did so a young woman with pale orange hair stuck her head out of a window about a storey above their heads in the narrow but very high space.

"Calina?"

"No, it's Lisska," Fox said shortly, placing a hand on her gut-shot patient. "I've come to see mother but we happened to witness one of those damned goldfish shooting someone. He should survive, given proper care: is Kajiki in?"

"I'll get him." The woman vanished.

"Kajiki's mother's doctor," Fox explained as further down the now enclosed jetty a second door opened and another woman, this one with hair a bright and obnoxious shade of yellow, waved them over. "He'll be able to fix this guy up in no time."

"Marie…" the man moaned, sounding utterly heartbroken.

"Which noble was it?" the yellow-haired woman asked. Fox thought.

"White outer garments, green gloves, three circles down the left side of the chest: top one mint green within dark blue, lower two red within pink. Black hair, thick nose, stubble. Short. Whiny little voice and a runny nose."

"Sixth family; Sounds like Charloss," said another woman from the stairs as they walked into the second door. This one Fox recognised: Sango, whose deep pink hair and odd birthmarks made her very popular whenever she waited at tables. "He's a petty idiot. Has a dreadful memory though, so we might be able to get her away from him if we move quickly."

"Her names Marie and the goldfish wanted her for his latest wife," Fox offered. "You'll have to get the rest out of our patient though. Oh, and she's a nurse."

"Maybe we can offer her a job," Sango suggested. "Give him here, Roronoa; you go clean up."

Zoro handed the wounded man over to the pretty waitress and looked around for a bathroom.

"Is it still the third door from the top of the first fight?" Fox asked, taking her lover's hand and leading him deeper into the rambling building complex.

"Fourth door!" drifted up the stairs after them.

"Is this normal?" Zoro asked softly.

Fox thought about it. "For a place run by my mother? Yes, actually. She doesn't believe in following laws that exist solely to oppress those not in power."

* * *

Zoro's first thought on meeting Fox' mother Pearl was, _they look almost nothing alike!_ It was simply the truth: Fox was slender and supple, though her bust was fairly generous, with pointed ears, pale skin, a rather square forehead, angular eyebrows and a very pointy nose. Her mother on the other hand had positively lavish curves, a much wider face, golden skin, a less severe nose, almost no eyebrows at all and rather less forehead. The only family resemblance that the swordsman could see was that they had exactly the same chin: a cleanly rounded curve at the end of the jaw rather than the sharp point more common on girls. The round chin enhanced Fox' resemblance to her father; on her mother it just looked pretty.

However as the older woman was easily seven feet tall and looked strong for all her softness Zoro had no intention of letting his guard down.

"All these years and this is who you bring home?" the blue-haired woman asked, her tone bland. She was wearing a long and very bright kimono, making it impossible for Zoro to verify the presence of fins rather than feet. "Whatever happened to that Ace boy Spitfire said was making eyes at you?"

"Ace is my friend, Mother, not my boyfriend," Fox said in the patient tones of someone who has already said this more times than they care to remember, "and he's in jail. I wrote to you about it."

"Oh I know that! I'm just wondering why you never picked him to settle down with. Spitfire said he was crazy about you."

"Spitfire was seeing things," Fox countered dryly. "Ace has enough issues as it is without adding my father to them. Zoro here on the other hand wants to be the world's greatest swordsman, so Mihawk is pretty much his _only_ issue."

Pearl circled Zoro, who felt like he was being probed for weaknesses. Unfortunately he wasn't sure what qualified as a weakness to this oddly intimidating woman.

"Is he at least treating you properly?" the blue-haired woman finally sighed, ending her examination and turning to look at her daughter. Fox said nothing, but her lazy and extremely satisfied smile informed Zoro of all the subtext that question had held and her answer to it.

"Well that's something," Pearl muttered. "Well, I can see you're stuck with him now, so at least he's young enough to train."

Zoro did not comment: Fox' emotions right now were broadcasting a sense of 'the sooner it's over the sooner we can escape'; he had never won a verbal fight against Nami and this woman was infinitely more skilled in that area.

"But why a swordsman, sweetheart? You saw how badly it turned out for your father and me!"

Fox smiled. "I can't help it mother; swordsman just charm me. I've never before liked a swordsman as much as I do Zoro, though, so I think it will work out."

"At least your idiot father finally promised to _ask_ you before trying to kill any more of your conquests," the large woman muttered darkly. "What he thought he was doing I have no idea; I've half a mind to blame him when he comes to complain about you doing this to you both."

"It has nothing to do with that!" Fox protested hotly. "Zoro was dying and I didn't want him to!"

"Death is part of life, Lisska sweetheart," Pearl said gently.

"I know! Mother, I know. But I wanted to be selfish for once. Is it wrong for me to want someone for myself?" Zoro reached out and wrapped his arms around his lover, glaring at the blue-haired woman who had upset her.

"Oh! So protective," Pearl cooed. "Well, you've made your choice now Lisska; try not to regret it. You do realise however that you are not getting out of a proper wedding?"

"Mother!" Fox wailed, one hand gripping Zoro's bicep warningly. "Zoro's got a bounty on his head! You can't expect a load of pirates from all over the Grand Line to be willing to share a building with a bunch of your Marine customers, can you? Besides, our captain is chasing his dream and we want to go with him."

"Then as soon as he's accomplished it I expect you both back here, with him, for a proper wedding," Pearl said firmly. "Or if that isn't possible, enough notice so I can set up a proper feast and invite everyone."

"Fine; Luffy deserves a feast to celebrate becoming Pirate King when he gets to the top anyway," Fox grumbled.

"I would have expected you both to want the wedding to be sooner rather than later," the navy-haired woman added musingly, "but to each their own, I suppose."

"Why?" Zoro asked. Pearl raised an eyebrow at him.

"You mean to say you haven't noticed?"

"Noticed what, mother?" Fox sighed. Pearl stared.

"You really haven't noticed. Lisska darling, you're pregnant."

"_**What?!**_"

* * *

Because in real life, things go wrong.


	61. Talk

**Talk**

Fox recovered first.

"Mother, could you leave us please? I'd rather have this discussion in private." Pearl left, quietly closing the door and locking it behind her.

"Zoro?" The swordsman stared at her, emotions cycling through shock, denial, fear and something that might possibly have been awe if it had stuck around for long enough.

"Are you?" he croaked. Fox paused, gazing into herself and automatically cataloguing her body and its functions. There: a tiny, fluttering spark of new life, one she had completely overlooked due to Zoro's much larger presence on her personal radar.

"Yes; I'd put the exact time at the middle of the week before Thriller Bark. What with healing you and recovering from the merge I totally overlooked it."

"So it's my fault?!" Zoro was frightened and trying to pick a fight, Fox could tell, but that didn't stop his angry, accusatory tone from hurting.

"Children are _never_ anyone's _fault_," she gritted out. "Children are a gift and a blessing and should be loved, protected and cherished. I would love to raise this child with you but I recognise that your dream is important and I'm not going to be in any fit state to fight alongside you for well over a year." It hurt to say it, hell it hurt to even think it, but she could raise her baby without Zoro's help. She had the friends, the funds and the connections to do so.

"Like hell I'd let anyone raise my child but me!" the swordsman exploded, lunging at her and holding her tight. "We'll manage," he pleaded. "You're way stronger than me: I can see it even though you try not to show it and being pregnant won't slow you down that much. I'll train harder and Luffy will be delighted by the idea of having a kid on board; he's dumb like that. Please, don't go!" The last bit was little more than a whispered entreaty borne on a wave of misery and panic.

Fox hugged him back, holding as tight as she dared while tears dribbled out of screwed-up eyes. "Love you," she breathed. "Love you so, so much."

The swordsman's hand drifted down to hover over her belly. "You're going to have a baby," he murmured, the awe having returned so strongly it made her dizzy. "My baby. I'm going to be a father." He swayed a little and Fox swiftly lowered him to the floor so he didn't faint.

"Better?" she asked once the dizziness had abated. Then she giggled, a silly thought having struck her.

"What's so funny?" Zoro grumbled. Fox lifted his chin so he could meet her eyes.

"Mihawk's going to be a grandpa!" she singsonged gleefully. As she had expected, her lover's eyes bulged.

"I… what… gah!" he clutched his head. "You are evil," he muttered. Fox giggled again, giddy with relief.

"But you love me anyway!"

"Well, duh," Zoro growled. "You're mine."

"And you are mine. You and our little moth," Fox agreed.

"Moth?"

"It isn't even a baby yet, just a tiny, fluttering spark of potential," Fox said softly. "It's… I can do all kinds of insane, impossible things with my Devil Fruit Ability, you know, but this… this is more amazing than any of them. We've made something _new_."

Zoro pulled her into his lap, wrapped his arms around her and smiled, the expression making him look young and carefree. "No matter what happens, we'll make it through," he vowed. "For our baby." His eyes burned with resolve, making the silly grin look wild and dangerous.

"For our little moth," Fox agreed, leaning her head against his. She finally had a burning, all-consuming ambition of her very own.

* * *

Having got his head around the utterly terrifying reality that, like it or lump it, he _was_ going to be a father, Zoro immediately went into overprotective overdrive. Fox decided to tolerate it for a little, but warned him that she was no more made of glass today than she had been last month at Enies Lobby. That had not stopped him from getting her mother to come back and asking her dozens of questions about what was going to happen, what Fox should be eating and whether there was anything that should specifically be avoided. As her mother answered all the questions with ever-increasing levels of approval radiating off her, Fox started thinking about what ways she could protect herself without leaping into the thick of things anymore. Her Colour of Concealment meant she could still be perfectly lethal at ambushes, just as her Colour of the Ruling Queen would enable her to escape dense and hostile crowding. Her Colour of Armament was a last-ditch defence: if anyone got close enough to land a hit she had stepped outside her assassin competence zone and into melee combat.

Sitting in the little private sitting room as her mother and lover conspired against her, Fox was abruptly grateful that she could use Haki to the degree she could. Nobody would be hurting her baby, not even if they through some freak chance managed to put her in Kairoseki cuffs again. She'd tolerated the imprisonment and the damage Krieg had imposed on her because she hadn't felt like laying waste to the very nice town they'd caught her in, then had wanted to keep as low a profile as possible. Acting weak and helpless was a highly effective tactic against arrogant fools and had her father not trashed the fleet she would likely have got away a few days later. She still wasn't sure if he'd known she was there when he did that.

She hadn't escaped after Gin let her out because he was a decent person under the violent killer instinct and ruthless efficiency, which had endeared him to her in spite of the situation. Having inherited a certain amount of impulsive whimsy from her father she had gone along with things, pretending to be far weaker than she was and had ultimately been rewarded in getting to meet Monkey D. Luffy and his crew of misfits. Getting to know said misfits had been more fun than she'd had since first meeting Ace, which was most of why she'd stuck around and not objected more when Luffy insisted she join the crew. Her faith in the rubberman had proved justified when he accepted her profession without batting an eyelid on Enies Lobby.

However, even if Luffy agreed Fox really wasn't sure she wanted to be sailing in the New World with a young crew of first-timers while pregnant. The New World was harsh, challenging and exhilarating to sail in but right now Fox just wanted to be safe. Zoro holding her made her feel safe; however right now she missed Shanks. The Red Force was the safest place she could think of for her child to be born, well out of the reach of the World Government and safe from other pirates and troublemakers. Shanks was practically family and his laid-back attitude made it easier for her to accept the kind of coddling that she was not going to be able to avoid once her belly started swelling. Of course the main problem with the Red Force was there was not a single woman in the crew, but Fox seriously doubted her mother's extended family of mermaids would accept her being in the New World as an acceptable excuse not to visit. Especially not Spitfire, who had never met an obstacle she couldn't bludgeon into submission.

Letting her lover pull her into his lap as he sat down next to her, his amazement and delight seeping down the bond they shared, Fox hoped everything would turn out for the best. She had to ensure Ace was rescued, even if she didn't join in, before she and Zoro could really decide what to do next.

* * *

Doubts, difficulty and adapting to tricky situations. It's generally possible to survive, but survival isn't enough.


	62. Action

**Action**

A few hours later Zoro realised it was probably time to catch up with the rest of the crew.

"Fox? Can you sense where the rest of the crew are?"

"Easily," his lover told him. "They're all moving around pretty quickly at the moment, except for Nami, Chopper, Franky and Sanji. Actually, the others are converging on those four now."

"Where are they?" Zoro asked as he led Fox out of another side door, one arm wrapped tightly around her waist.

Fox made a face. "Grove one."

"Isn't that where we left the Sunny?"

Fox snorted. "We left the Sunny in grove _forty_ one, Asura-koi. Grove one is the site of the Human Auction House."

Zoro really liked his new nickname, but immediately understood why it was Fox so loathed the very idea of grove one. "Where you…" he trailed off.

"It is the biggest trader in the archipelago and belongs to Donflamingo," Fox confirmed through gritted teeth. "And Keimi is inside."

"She got caught," Zoro realised, "so the others have gone to rescue her."

"Nami's more likely to try and buy her back," Fox corrected, guiding his swiftly though backstreets and over rickety bridges in a more-or-less straight line towards their destination. "She understands that starting a fight is the last thing we want to do."

"Lisska," the swordsman said carefully.

"Hm?"

"Can you promise me that if it turns into a real fight you'll run straight back to the Sunny? Please?"

His lover sighed, mingled warmth and irritation coming through the connection. "Fine. Since I'm not in disguise I'll keep a low profile."

"That's not the same thing," Zoro pointed out. "Please, Fo- Lisska? I'm not sure I'll be able to concentrate properly otherwise."

"You fight dirty," Fox muttered. "Fine; I'll leg it if things take a turn for the worse. Are you sure you can fight properly on your own?"

"I'll manage," the swordsman assured her firmly. He had to.

"Good. Don't expect me to go inside that damned building though; just looking at it makes me want to go on a killing spree."

Zoro honestly couldn't blame her for that.

* * *

Eustass Kid had been about to leave the Auction House in disgust when there was a loud yell and the door was smashed in, revealing Straw Hat Luffy, Pirate Hunter Zoro, a concussed flying fish, some nameless man and a very, very angry woman; he could feel her projected aura of fury from a dozen yards back.

"What the hell was that?! Can't you land any better?!" the Straw Hat shouted.

"How was I supposed to?! The nameless weakling roared back. "This is a flying fish! You told me to get you in, didn't you?!"

The Pirate Hunter was rubbing his head with one hand and helping the woman to her feet with the other, completely ignoring his captain. His facial expression suggested he was expecting everything to go to hell in the next few seconds, which when Kid caught sight of the woman's face seemed highly likely: _there_ was a glare to make Marine Captains shit themselves at fifty paces.

"Ah! Keimi!" Straw Hat Luffy said, noticing the mermaid on the stage and dashing down the steps towards her, ignoring the man who was trying to stop him. "Keimi, we were looking for you! Thank goodness!" He really was an idiot; how had someone like that survived this long, let alone made it to be a pirate captain with a 300 million bounty?

Then the man who had tried to stop Luffy was revealed to be an octopus fishman and was shot by one of the Tenryuubito, prompting the lunatic Straw Hat to turn around. Kid watched as the much shorter man walked quietly back up the steps towards the gloating World Noble, his formerly cheerful expression having been abruptly replaced by one of calm fury. Eustass Kid suddenly _knew _that Straw Hat Luffy was a pirate who did not care about consequences; that certainly explained Enies Lobby.

"Is he serious?" The violent redhead murmured as the newly arrived pirate pulled back a fist and advanced on the Tenryuubito.

"You piss me off, too!" Straw Hat shouted, punching the noble hard in the face and ploughing him through a dozen rows of empty seats. There was a moment of total silence, broken only by the cracking of Monkey D. Luffy's knuckles and faint but delighted snickering from the woman who'd arrived with him, who now had her face buried in the Pirate Hunter's shoulder. Kid grinned: the coming fight was going to be _fantastic.  
_

* * *

"Sorry you guys," Luffy said into the silence, facing those of his crew present from halfway down the steps. "I hear that if you hit one of these guys a Marine Admiral's gonna show up with battleships in tow…" Even Fox was there, though he would have to remember to call her Lisska since she wasn't wearing her bandannas.

"Why did you have to go and punch him?" Zoro complained, sword half drawn. "I wanted to slice him up myself."

Nami hurried down the steps to hover over Hachi, but Fo –Lisska moved smoothly past the octopus and down towards the stage, furled umbrella hanging from one hand and her face a mask of serene blankness. Luffy didn't like that face: it gave him the creeps. She'd been incredibly angry when he picked her and Zoro up and dragged them into the Auction House on the flying fish but now that burning wrath was nowhere to be seen. Luffy knew it hadn't gone away; Lisska didn't cool down that quickly. She'd just hidden it.

"Well I guess that settles our plan for now, then," Franky said.

"The key to Keimi's collar had gotta be somewhere over there backstage!" Chopper said. "I've gotta see to Hachi's wounds; good luck you guys!"

"Why you!" shouted a nasal voice from behind him. Luffy glanced over his shoulder to see another guy with a bubble over his head in a frothing rage. "How dare a lowly peasant such as yourself lay a finger on my son?!"

The rest of the crowd panicked, stampeding towards the exits.

* * *

As pandemonium broke out in the audience Fox stepped up onto the stage and knocked on the goldfish bowl containing Keimi. The mermaid jumped, having been too caught up in seeing her fishman friend shot to notice the white-haired woman's approach.

"Duck, Keimi-chan," Fox said, using fish-speech so the message would carry through the glass. The green-haired girl dived to the bottom of the bowl as Fox loosened the blade within her umbrella.

_Shiiik._

The top of the bowl slid off onto the floor, releasing a small wave of water that the Devil Fruit User took several quick steps back to avoid; not that it would do her any harm, but she was wearing expensive shoes today. Her sword was once more concealed within her umbrella's handle, likely having been missed altogether by most of those present.

Then more flying fish crashed through the walls of the building, unloading those members of the Straw-Hats who hadn't already arrived. Usopp landed right on top of the Noble Goldfish who'd been harrumphing so indignantly, which was pretty awesome really. As the auctioneer started calling for guards Fox absently knocked him off the stage with her umbrella, not even bothering to reinforce it with Haki: he was weak. Considering her crew were winning the fight taking place, Fox leant over Keimi to get a closer look at her collar.

"Hmm… they really haven't updated the design at all, have they?" she mused, fingers playing over it. She was about to set the trembling mermaid free when another over-privileged twit with a gun marched up on stage and tried to push past her to reach Keimi. Fox didn't even think; she detested the Tenryuubito and all that they stood for with a cold and calculating malice that thought nothing of poisoning people in their sleep.

The highly focussed blast of her Colour of the Ruling Queen didn't quite kill the woman, though it had likely damaged her mind in all kind of messy ways. As the World Noble keened like a dying rabbit the stage backdrop tore from top to bottom, revealing a giant and a very spry old man with a massive grin.

"See? What'd I tell ya, Giant-kun? This place is total chaos!" He looked around. "The auction's over and I've stolen my money; guess it's time to head back to do some more gambling. Oh, hello Lisska. What are you doing in here?"

Fox sighed. "Ray. I should have known."

The man waved his hip flask at her. "That's _Grandpa_ Ray to you, kid. Did you think I didn't know about your ma?"

Fox blinked. "You never asked," she replied reflexively.

Silvers Rayleigh laughed again. "I would never have got to be this old if I hadn't learnt to pay attention to the evidence of my eyes, my little golden girl: You inherited my hair." He glanced out over the wrecked seating area in a distinctly theatrical manner. "What's this? Looks like everyone's looking at us."

Fox growled. She hated being at the centre of attention and she knew that every last pirate in the building had heard that 'Grandpa Ray'. Since her captain would definitely stop her from ensuring this incident never saw the light of day Fox instead stalked off into the wings, looking for the guardroom. She could at least set free today's unfortunates.

* * *

And that's who Fox' human grandfather is, which explains how she manages to be sixteen different kinds of amazing. It also explains her mother; well, to point.


	63. Shock

**Shock**

It took Fox almost no time at all to find the keys, so she immediately set about freeing all the slaves in the building and incapacitating any guards still running around.

"If this the first time you've ever been caught, feel free to rob the unconscious would-be buyers blind and get the hell out of here," she said shortly. "Anyone marked by the Dragon's Hoof, stick around and I'll deal with it."

The slaves passed the keys amongst themselves as the pretty dancing girl with lilac hair sat down on the floor, a length of chain in gripped her teeth and a blanket clutched to her chest, as Fox produced a short and very sharp knife from her belt and set about the bloody task of quick and dirty cosmetic surgery. The Hoof of the Dragon was branded onto every slave by their owner, but if the victim could stand it then it was possible to flay the mark off. Every last former slave Fox had ever met had considered the pain well worth it.

The assassin neatly carved lines in her patient's back around the ugly brand, loosened the skin at the top and applied a faint pulse of her Devil Fruit Ability to loosen the epidermis. Then she put the knife down, made sure she had a good grip on the loose skin and pulled hard.

* * *

The agonised scream from offstage drew everyone's attention away from the wily old man Trafalgar Law recognised as being Silvers Rayleigh, the Dark King and former first mate of Gol D. Roger's crew.

"What was that?" asked Cyborg Franky, shifting nervously.

"It's just Lisska," Pirate Hunter Roronoa said calmly, not moving from his spot behind his captain.

Rayleigh shook his head as he hopped off the stage and headed up the steps towards the injured octopus fishman, who had been bandaged by the surprisingly competent reindeer. "Believes in tough love, does little Lisska; gets it from her father I suppose." There was another rending scream as the aging pirate knelt on the stairs. "You're not going to die on me, right Hachi? You always used to be so careful about wandering around on this island."

Law ignored that conversation, being more interested in the whispering among the Straw Hats.

"What's she doing?" the Cat-Burglar hissed at the Pirate Hunter, who glanced sideways with a distinctly amused grin.

"Her good deed for the day, apparently."

Another shriek of concentrated agony assaulted the Surgeon of Death's ears.

"Good deed?" Black Leg repeated, sounding slightly nauseated. "What's going on back there?!"

The swordsman paused, head tilted briefly to one side as if listening to something. "Oi," he said loudly. "Lisska wants to know if anyone here's got experience at flaying people; she could use a second pair of hands."

There was an abrupt, shocked silence.

"She's _flaying_ people?!" the long-nose squeaked in horror.

"It's not something I've actually tried before," Law admitted, rather intrigued by the woman the Dark King had claimed as his granddaughter who clearly had some kind of connection to the Straw Hat Pirates.

"Too fiddly," Eustass grunted, nonetheless looking slightly impressed.

Roronoa nodded. "Anyone interested in learning? She's got six more people to do and the Marines have blocked us in, so time's getting critical."

"Why is she skinning people?" Straw Hat asked curiously, glancing over his shoulder at the Pirate Hunter as another scream ripped through the Auction House.

"Slaves get branded so that everyone knows they're property," the swordsman told his captain shortly. "She's taking the marks off."

"Oh. Okay," Straw Hat accepted, turning back to Rayleigh as a loud announcement from the gathered forces outside revealed that both Law and Kid were being treated as accomplices to the short pirate captain's insanity.

The Pirate Hunter headed down the steps towards the stage with a sigh. Law heard the swordsman mutter, "I'm coming, I'm coming," as he hurried past where the Deadly Surgeon was sitting; it led the doctor to wonder exactly what Devil Fruit this Lisska had that enabled her to speak into a person's head like that. His curiosity was piqued now; he'd have to investigate for himself what exactly was involved in flaying people at some point.

Well, after he'd taken out some of the Marines besieging them; like hell he'd leave it all to that cocky bastard Eustass. Nobody told Trafalgar Law what to do!

* * *

With Zoro's assistance it took Fox barely any time at all to finish, at which point she was happy to hand over her patients to the giant and make her escape. As her lover pointed out, she had promised to run away if it came to a fight. With this in mind, rather than join the rest of the fighters out front she sat on one of the benches, quietly attacking the building's load bearing walls with highly focussed blasts of Haki. Fox had learnt you could cause physical damage with the Colour of the Conquering King –or her own variant of it– after noticing that, when using it on people, her target's surroundings were faintly affected. A certain amount of careful experimentation later and Fox could attack inorganic things and damage them through sheer willpower. She'd not done anything this big before, but the Human Auction House was a perfect test subject.

She allowed the Marines to escort her outside, graciously accepted their apologies and hurried away towards the Thousand Sunny. She had agreed to run because Dracule Lisska had no place fighting alongside pirates. Angel of Death Fox on the other hand had no such excuse. As she headed across the archipelago she took note of the odd living shells that had arrived with Admiral Kizaru; Pacifistas like Kuma, but without free will. They didn't even have the echoes of souls that the zombies on Thriller Bark did, leaving them wholly empty of will. Fox instinctively loathed them, promising herself that if she ever met one she would rip it apart without delay. They were even more of a mockery of the living than the zombies had been: at least those animated corpses hadn't actually been alive.

On returning to the Sunny Fox immediately changed her clothes, fishing the fast-asleep form of Calla out of her bodice as she did so. Fifteen minutes later her hair was hidden tidily under a loud pink, green and acid blue floral bandanna while another slightly less loud red, orange and grey one disguised her jawline. Rather than her favoured skimpy tops Fox had instead selected a yellow, white and blue dress shirt to wear, the garment's looser fit allowing her to hide body armour beneath it. Fox did not usually bother with armour of any kind, but considering her condition a reinforced stomach protector was a sensible precaution. Not that she would be slowing down any time soon, but it would help Zoro to keep his head.

Fastening her double sword harness, snatching a selection of knives and throwing on a duster coat over the top, Fox grabbed a pair of green-tinted sunglasses that had caught her eye in St. Poplar and rammed the black cowboy hat on her head. She was about to leave the ship when her Colour of Observation rang a bell deep in her hindbrain, down where it met her fighting instincts, analytical abilities and experience of dealing with the World Government to fuse into something approaching precognition.

Fox suddenly had a Very Bad Feeling about the rest of the day. The last time she'd had this particular shiver run down her spine her father had murdered her current lover shortly afterwards. Apparently by accident, but dead was dead. Fox turned around and walked calmly back into her cabin, removed all her weapons from the walls and slotted them into the weapons' chest she'd used to bring them on board from Swift Hunter. Then she dragged it out on deck and activated it.

The sea crocodile slid quietly overboard as the assassin went back inside to activate the bookshelf as well; no-one on board had realised yet that she made a point of animating all her furniture as a security feature. The manta ray had little difficulty getting itself out of the cabin and into the water, leaving the bedroom barren of everything save a handful of unused letter cases, Cho and Calla, who had just woken up, the bed itself and Cho's perch.

"Cho, I'm not sure what's going to happen but could you please stay behind and guard the ship until everyone gets back? I have a bad feeling," Fox told the South Bird. Cho bobbed his head, flying out of the open door to perch on the yardarm.

Fox then activated the letter cases so they could make their own way on board Swift Hunter, who was lurking under the mangroves. No matter what happened her ship would follow her, so she didn't need to worry about losing it. Draping Calla around her neck once more, Fox dropped over the rail onto moderately dry land and headed off towards Shakky's Rip-off Bar and her crew. Hopefully things wouldn't go too badly, no matter what her instincts were telling her.

* * *

So one, maybe two more chapters before the diaspora. I wish I was less feverish so my brain worked better...


	64. Bad

**Bad**

It was taking all of Zoro's concentration to fight the entity that looked like the Shichibukai Kuma but didn't seem quite as strong, as fast or as skilled as the man whose actions had led to the swordsman's almost-death. It didn't feel right either, but there wasn't time to think it over when it was attacking them with highly destructive beams of light. Zoro was focussing hard on the feel of his chest heaving and muscles burning, the gentle fire of heavy exercise defining exactly what he had to work with. His other half wasn't here; hopefully wouldn't get here until _after_ the battle was over.

The swordsman launched another attack at the Kuma look-alike, timing it perfectly to strike alongside Sanji and Luffy. There was a brief pause, then their enemy went down.

"Hah… hah…" Luffy gasped, holding onto his hat. "Is he that different? Then does he have a twin?"

"That's also a possibility," Sanji conceded.

"If he was the real one he's be teleporting around and avoiding our attacks," Zoro explained. "More importantly he doesn't use shockwaves and doesn't have those paw things!" Zoro had a healthy respect for that particular Devil Fruit Ability, though he could feel Fox' bone-deep certainty that she could work around it if necessary. Agility and Kairoseki blades were an effective combination even without the element of surprise. He'd felt her alarm when they were attacked, but she was still a good number of groves away from where the fight had broken out. "But if he's really a fake, that's a problem in itself: it means there's more than one of something as strong as him." There was a sound of shifting rubble and their opponent started levering itself upright, metal peeking through its damaged shoulder. "Damn."

Another round of attacks later and Zoro briefly lost track of how long his legs were. It was only for an instant, but quite enough to jar his back and wrench his stomach in trying not to get hit while falling over. He hadn't been too successful in avoiding hits: the Kuma thing had blasted him in the gut with a beam. It hadn't penetrated his skin but it was still a severe burn and it hurt. Part of him could tell it probably should have done more damage than it did and was unspeakably grateful for his lover's deeply ingrained habit of subtly reinforcing the people she cared about. No; her habit of teaching the very bodies of her nakama how to heal stronger than ever before, with ever-increasing adaptability. Fox didn't just heal: she taught your body how to fix itself, as much as it could. Which explained why bruises and scratches didn't seem to stick to Luffy for all that long anymore, as well as why eating meat was a genuine cure-all for the rubberman.

"Unnnghh!" he groaned, sprawled across the ground a good way back from the rest of the fight. Less damaged or not, he still really hurt. Not that it mattered right now: this fight needed to be over as soon as possible so they could lie low until Rayleigh had coated the Sunny. Fox' mother would put them up, Zoro was sure of it, so it was just a matter of winning.

* * *

It took Zoro using his Asura, Sanji using Diable Janbe and Luffy using his Gear Third, but they did manage to take down the Kuma copy eventually. Nami sincerely hoped this was all the excitement they would have today, as none of them were in any shape for a rematch.

"Where's Fox?" she panted.

"Grove fifty three," Zoro wheezed, "moving very quickly. Something about having a bad feeling?"

Nami felt her stomach plummet into her shoes. She didn't get on very well with Fox –there really wasn't much common ground between the navigator and the three years' older assassin– but the redhead recognised that the other woman had an excellent sense of proportion and never panicked. If anything, she was a little too laid back in the face of danger. For Fox to have a bad feeling…

It could easily be very bad.

"What kind of bad feeling?" she asked. Zoro frowned, eyes getting that now very familiar faraway look.

"Convergence of attackers… we've been found!" the swordsman said sharply just as a new voice rang around them:

"Ugh, you assholes really piss me off!"

* * *

Fox all but flew through the branches of the mangroves, jika-tabi and sharkskin gloves enabling her to grip to the smooth bark of the yarukimans and never slip. She'd been well out of reach when the first Pacifista tore into her crew but the Straw-Hats had risen to the occasion and defeated it. Then Sentomaru caught up with them with another Pacifista in tow, followed by Admiral Kizaru, who immediately targeted Zoro.

"Bloody Twinkletoes and his bloody perfect timing!" Fox hissed furiously as she darted through the branches sheltering grove fifteen, pouring all the healing strength she could into her lover without further disrupting his grasp on his physical identity. "Coulda been worse though… coulda been Meltyman." 'Meltyman' was Fox' highly inappropriate way of referring to the admiral who could turn his body into lava and was, to her mind, hypocritically hung up on the idea of the pirates being the Bad Guys. _It isn't like the Marines don't kill just as many people; a life is a life, no matter who it belongs to. All have the right to ask for justice, be they innocent child or hardened criminal. The pirate you kill is no less worthy of vengeance than the marine he murdered before your eyes. _

Fox didn't believe in justice; so far as she was concerned justice was all about drowning the world in blood until there was nobody left standing. _There are no innocents._ Fox subscribed to a small sect of a little-practiced religion that believed in acceptance of one's faults, forgiveness and divine grace. It helped her sleep at night, prevented her mind from tearing itself apart and made it so much easier to keep her blades in check in the face of blatant, unrepentant evil. Well, for the few seconds it took to invite the evildoer to reconsider his lifestyle choices anyway. Fox might have believed in forgiveness and second chances, but she also firmly believed that everyone was required to accept the consequences of their actions. Frequently those consequences involved dying by her hand in short order.

Rayleigh had arrived just in time to prevent Fox from doing something really drastic that would have got her into serious trouble –like killing Admiral Kizaru– but just as the assassin reached the edge of grove twelve Chopper transformed into the huge, mad monster she remembered vaguely from Enies Lobby and the real Bartholomew Kuma arrived on the scene.

Fox' bad feeling blossomed and grew teeth and claws. She all but flew the last few hundred yards, drawing her swords and falling upon the fully inhuman Pacifista just as her lover was torn away from her, launched into the air with impossible speed. The cyborg fell in pieces beneath her fury; Fox screamed like an enraged bird of prey at her loss, launching herself at the one who had injured her so.

* * *

Usopp trembled. He'd known Fox could be scary; he'd known she was strong. However he hadn't seen it for himself until now and he hadn't realised quite how wide the divide between her and the rest of the crew really was. Her swords had vanished in the instant after dismembering the cyborg that had been beating him, the now-vanished Zoro, Brooke and Sanji up and been replaced by knives, which had seemed counter-intuitive until she somehow got behind the newly-arrived Kuma who'd made Zoro disappear and used the blades to claw her way up his back, keening like a furious hawk as she did so. Kuma's immediate reaction to this apparently pointless behaviour indicated she was using blades made of Sea Stone and the unbelievable speed with which he shook, twisted and violently tried to dislodge her showed exactly how seriously the Shichibukai was taking the threat to his person.

It took a monumental eight seconds for Fox to be unseated and launched upwards, at the end of which Kuma advanced on them with chilling determination, blood dripping down his back. Brooke vanished next; Sanji pushed Usopp aside and attacked the Shichibukai but was deflected. Then a paw-marked hand hit the sniper's chest and he blacked out.

* * *

And it all goes down the tubes. Oh, and there is now a full complement of nicknames for the Admirals.


	65. Worse

**Worse **

Being made airborne forced Fox to think rather than just react; she immediately reached out and latched onto her crew, making clear, clean bonds with them that she had thus far deemed unnecessary. It was a rush job, so they were probably far too strong, but they were in no way intimate. More like a permanent monitor, enabling her to perform long-distance what she generally needed skin contact for. She couldn't heal through this kind of tie but she could keep track of her captain's nakama's location, health and wellbeing. As first Brooke, then Usopp and Sanji followed Zoro in leaving the grove at high speed Fox cringed, landing amongst broken stone and clutching her heart. Forceful separation from her beloved bonded other half _hurt_. She could _feel_ him being dragged further and further away as though their connection was being stretched on a rack. Worse, she could feel how much it hurt him as well.

Just a monitoring bond wouldn't be enough for Luffy though; he was her nakama. She needed a stronger tie to him if they were going to get through this, especially with Ace still in need of rescue. But Ace at least knew how to get hold of her in a hurry. Sheathing her knives, the assassin lurched into a run as Robin was torn away from her immediate reach, arriving at her distraught captain just before Kuma did.

"What's wrong with me?!" Luffy wailed.

Fox kicked him hard. "Stupid captain! Fox is still here! Captain must listen!"

Luffy's battered, snotty and tearful face jerked up to stare. "F-f-fox?"

Fox kept her eyes on Kuma; her Colour of Observation was fully focussed on the Shichibukai and telling her things that she didn't much like, but would have to live with for the time being. "Listen." She dropped to one knee, eyes never leaving her massive opponent, and gently ran the backs of her first two fingers over Luffy's voicebox, imbuing it with a measure of her Ability. "You need me, you call me. _Say my name and I will hear_. Does Captain understand?" Kuma moved closer. "Understand Luffy?" she hissed. "Call and I'll find you!"

"C-call you and you'll find me..?"

"If you were to go on a trip, where would you like to go?" the Shichibukai rumbled softly. Fox did not respond aloud; instead as she rose to her feet she allowed his own Colour of Observation to read from her the image of a large ship with a stylised dragon prow and a red-haired man with a scarred face and only one arm. There was only the faintest hint of acknowledgement in Kuma's face as his palm met her shoulder.

Rushing wind.

Blackness.

* * *

Fox had plenty of time to fret over the wellbeing of her crew as she flew through the air. It occurred to her as she did so that she had no idea if Kuma's Nikyu-Nikyu no Mi enabled him to launch things at moving targets; it seemed she would just have to find out for herself. There was also the issue of impact-related damage on board a ship; boards were less forgiving than earth, being inclined to splinter rather than simply deform. She was protected in flight by Kuma's Devil Fruit Ability, which had formed a bubble around her and Calla, but it did not provide her with either food or drink. Neither was really an issue for her –her Logia powers made eating strictly optional– but Calla was not so fortunate. At least she still had the hastily-packed bag she'd thrown together before leaving the Sunny.

The bag contained Ace' orange hat, a few days' worth of trail rations, a small first-aid kit, a water bottle, a change of clothes and a cage with the two mice Beastie had found on board the other day. The mice had probably been part of a larger group, but Calla proved highly gifted at pest control and Beastie was almost as good despite not eating rodent. Fox suspected Ace had thought it funny to train his messenger golem to chase rats. It also contained the pages of advice her mother had given to her to pass on to Sanji about what she should be eating –and doing– while pregnant.

Fox sniffed, crushing grief abruptly overwhelming her. She was flying in exactly the opposite direction to Zoro, headed out into the New World, and probably wouldn't see him in weeks. She wanted him with her to hold her close, to reassure her that she would be a good mother in spite of her profession, to trace the faded scars on his skin and burn in the fires of shared passion. But instead she was alone, cold and lost, at the mercy of a man she barely trusted to send her to an uncertain destination.

As tentative comfort trickled down the bond she shared with Zoro, indicating he had regained consciousness for the time being, Fox curled herself into a ball and wept. She hated being out of reach of the touch of those she loved. Swift Hunter was wonderful because within her ship she was cradled in warmth and safety, cocooned and protected. The Sunny had been bright and beloved and Zoro had been there, always within reach if she needed him and a warm, solid presence every single night. Now she was alone and cold and had to prevent her hatchling from freezing or starving while also ensuring her tiny, fluttering moth of a baby-to-be did not come to harm.

More warmth filtered down the bond, coaxing her into sleep. Distance would not affect it; Zoro would be blunder through her dreams like he always did and right now that was an incredibly comforting thought. Tucking Calla inside the front of her shirt so the serpent would not get cold, Fox tripped the mental switches in her mind that would send her to sleep, not caring that she was way, way up in the air. A fall wouldn't kill her, not even if she fell into the sea, and Calla was a water snake.

* * *

Waiting was the worst part. Three whole days of moving through the air, wrapped in a sealed bubble as she flew through snowstorms, lightning, cloud, clear sky and rain falling upwards. Fox had not felt so utterly helpless in years and it was profoundly upsetting. She tried to follow Zoro's example and sleep through as much of the flight as possible, but she couldn't make herself relax. The only way for her to rest was to force herself to, which was unhealthy. Instead Fox drifted in an uneasy doze, communicating more-or-less incoherently with Zoro depending on how asleep she was, her mind chasing itself in circles and wandering all over the place.

She finally woke to a change in the angle of the light, a large, four-masted ship below her and a wonderfully familiar collection of life-signatures on board it just as on the other side of the world Zoro went from fast asleep to out cold.

* * *

Fox is starting to feel hormonal on top of everything else.


	66. Watching

**Watching**

Lisska lay curled up in a ball in Shanks' bed, arms wrapped tightly around a pillow and fast asleep. The red-haired captain perched on the edge of the mattress sighed, shaking his head silently at the adorable picture the young woman made. He'd first met the little eyas when she was all of ten months old and her father still had a bounty on his head. Poor Mihawk had been at his wits end, trying to care for a baby, hide said baby's existence from the Marines and take out the never-ending stream of swordsmen after his title. Lisska's mother had done her best to help, but for all she was a genuine savant with Haki Pearl was not a fighter and had not had any experience of life beyond Fishman Island. She _was_ a highly capable navigator and a good mother but that didn't stop her from getting ill, which was what had led to a much younger Shanks coming across a young mermaid with a fever and a very tired swordsman perched on a raft with a fussy baby in the middle of a fog bank not quite two years after Roger's death.

To this day Shanks had never seen such a lost look on the face of his rival and friend as the one on the four-years-older man's face at that long-ago meeting as he tried to soothe the unhappy blonde baby in his arms while three feet away a seven-foot mermaid with dark blue hair and a Trevally tail was muttering incoherently and twitching occasionally. The swordsman had looked up as Shanks' ship drifted out of the fog and the redhead had just had to do something for the poor guy. He couldn't leave a fellow pirate hanging like that, especially not when he had a baby and a mermaid with him.

It had taken many assurances and oaths to persuade Mihawk to hand over his daughter to a relative stranger, but Shanks had the advantage of being fully healthy and having several full nights' sleep over the swordsman and had won the argument. Ten minutes later Dracule Mihawk had been dead to the world in a hammock and Shanks was holding an adorable little blonde who watched him with big, gold eyes just like her father's. He's fallen in love instantly: who could not love such an adorable little lady? Her fascination with his hair was just cute and her happy smiles so utterly unlike her father that it was funny. She was like a baby hawk, all fuzz and claws and golden eyes; an adorable little eyas.

When Mihawk eventually woke up Shanks had to give the baby back, but he managed to coax the swordsman into sparring with him and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. In the end the scowling swordsman stayed until his mermaid companion –who he insisted was _not_ his lover– was properly coherent again, at which point the small family made themselves scarce.

After that Shanks had run into them often, sparring with Mihawk, taking Lisska off their hands for a while so they could rest, sleep or so Mihawk could deal with whoever was following them around at that time. The baby had been a few months past her first birthday when Mihawk was offered the chance to be a Shichibukai and accepted with cool aplomb and no small amount of relief; Shanks suspected Mihawk would have gone mad if he'd had to deal with Marines and bounty hunters on top of his daughter's terrible twos. She was incredibly bright and precocious and had an astounding memory. Watching her learn to walk had been terrifying as she had tried to run right off the bat and frequently fell overboard. The first time he'd seen her fall into the water Shanks had panicked, only for Pearl to emerge from under the waves with Lisska in her arms and no worse for her dunking. Mihawk had seemed unmoved by the near-miss, which was later explained as the baby being able to breathe underwater like her mother.

Lisska was four when Mihawk caught her mimicking him using a real sword she'd found somewhere and decided it was time for her to have a proper education and a more stable environment; he then shipped both mermaid and child back to Fishman Island. Shanks tried to visit but Fishman was Whitebeard's turf so he had to be tactful about it. Then she'd gone missing and he hadn't seen her again until she was sixteen.

* * *

Meeting sixteen-year-old Lisska had been interesting: she'd somehow got on board his ship during the night and made herself at home in his bed, never mind that he'd been in it at the time. As Shanks had been drinking he was not remotely sober and didn't think to wonder where the pretty lady had come from even when morning came around. So it was then that when Mihawk boarded the Red Force the next morning looking for his teenage daughter, having followed her, he found her in bed with a slightly hung-over and rather handsy Shanks being cuddled.

Mihawk hadn't been interested in sparring with Shanks after the redhead lost his left arm, but the swordsman made an exception that morning. Well, it was closer to a murder attempt than a spar but the redhead had gotten to his sword in time and had a pretty good time in spite of his hangover. When the misunderstanding had been cleared up Mihawk scolded Lisska for getting into bed with older men –_again_, which made Shanks laugh like crazy– and tried to order her to stop. Her answer to the demand was slightly incoherent, but boiled down to a refusal. Well, she agreed not to do it with anyone she didn't know and trust, but she refused to stop bugging Shanks unless Red-Hair wanted her to stop.

Despite having babysat Lisska as a toddler Shanks was a sucker for pretty women and this was just not something he could pass up, never mind that the little eyas had grown up to look like a female version of her father. He'd spotted at once that Lisska's clinginess was purely platonic and decided to see how far he had to push Mihawk to get the man to fight him again. So he'd asked what Lisska would do if Shanks asked her to leave him alone. The teenager had instantly and shamelessly admitted that she'd see if Benn Beckman was amenable to company, making her father scowl furiously. Shanks had laughed like a madman and told her she could join him anytime, which had won him a hug and a kiss from Lisska and almost provoked Mihawk into taking his head off before he could explain his reasoning. The swordsman had calmed down when the redhead explained that Lisska was probably acting clingy because she didn't feel safe otherwise, so the behaviour should fade over time as she settled down again.

* * *

Shanks smiled down at Lisska, petting her hair absently. Her clinginess hadn't faded at all in five years, though she'd gained enough confidence to be able to sleep in her chosen spot whether or not the bed's proper owner was there. Of course if he tried to sleep elsewhere she'd chase him down and join him –probably in her sleep– but otherwise she would stay put. He'd listened to her explanation of events that had led to her landing on deck –pregnancy included– and shunted her off to bed after having the cook prepare a good meal for her. He had every intention of following Whitebeard to Marineford to ensure things didn't get too out of hand and hoped the little eyas would be prepared to stay where he could see her. He'd been surprised to learn that the baby she was expecting wasn't Fire Fist's, but that she had a different lover wouldn't keep her from pulling out all the stops getting her friend back. Shanks had only seen Eyas and Fire Fist together once and from a considerable distance, but it had been blatantly obvious they were two of a kind no matter how deeply in denial they both were.

Shaking his head, the one-armed pirate captain left his cabin and closed the door behind him. He had plenty to do without bothering himself with Lisska's love-life.

* * *

An eyas is a fledgeling hawk or other bird of prey; it's a falconry term. Shanks sees Lisska as someone to be protected and cherished regardless of how grown-up capable she is, but he's more tactful about it than the rest of the men in her life.


	67. Waiting

**Waiting**

Ace hung limply from the chains half-suspending him from the wall, blood trickling down the side of his face and chest. A while after his manic laughing fit the wardens had come to see what was going on and had not been pleased to find him half unchained, nor to hear that he had almost been eaten by a burrowing hagfish. Ace' public execution was scheduled for less than a week away and having him die in prison would make the government look bad. The pirate had therefore been moved to a more central cell. He'd also been beaten up when he fought back; he'd liked his previous cell after the redecorating Fox' messenger had put it through and had wanted to stay there. Sadly, the prison wardens had not been amenable to the idea.

He had toyed with the idea of calling for help, but eventually decided against it. Fox could get in here easy, but getting out was the important part and it was better to call for backup once there was a viable escape route to be taken. Otherwise he'd just drag her into his mess, which wasn't done.

Ace knew Fox was scary-strong –he'd seen her spar against Marco and _win_– but everyone had limits. It had nothing to do with pride, at least he hoped it didn't as Fox would beat him over the head for that later if it did; she always knew. According to Fox pride was a luxury, one that had to be set aside when people you cared about were on the line. Everything had its place, but you had to make sure you had your priorities straight.

_What is more precious to you?_ She'd asked him once after a fight, _your pride or your life? Or, more importantly, your pride or the lives of your family? Because you have to know before you make a choice you'll regret._ He'd hated her for a full month afterwards and sulked, but had eventually apologised when Marco pointed out he was being ungrateful. She'd saved his neck and the necks of three of his comrades; a little humility wasn't all that big a price to pay. Ace had grumbled, but the next time she visited he'd thanked her for saving his fool neck and promised to always put his own life and the lives of his family before his pride. Some of the crew had poked fun and teased him about being wrapped around her fingers but Fox had shut them up by asking if they were jealous that she cared and let Ace carry her off to a quiet corner for a more in-depth chat.

However, the main problem with being stuck in a cell at the bottom of Impel Down was that he was bored. Being bored meant there was nothing to do but reminisce over the past or fret about the future. Fretting about the future got old very quickly, especially when he considered his big sister and her likely reaction to learning about the execution, not to mention what Pops would do, so Ace had immersed himself in memories and tried to make the time pass more quickly.

* * *

Ace had known Fox for nearly two years before he met her father; as first meetings go it had been about as far from ideal as it could get for both men. Bad for Ace because he'd been helping Fox wash her thigh-length hair when Marco banged on the bathhouse door and told them Mihawk had come looking for his daughter and they couldn't stall him for very long. Bad for Mihawk because Fox had not had any qualms about running out of the bathhouse half-naked, soapy and soaking wet to punch the man in the face, hard. In front of Pops and most of the Division Commanders. She'd actually used Haki to make the injury stick, then turned around and stalked back below deck to finish getting clean. Thus Mihawk had first seen Ace while the nineteen-year-old was chasing after his daughter with a towel and Ace had first seen Mihawk cratered in a wall and cradling the side of his face as one of Pops' nurses tried to get a better look at the shiner and see whether Fox had cracked her father's skull.

Once back in the bathhouse Fox had burst into tears, which Ace had no idea how to deal with so he'd just pulled her into his lap and cuddled her. Petting was a general cure-all for the very physical woman. It had taken most of an hour to calm her down to the point of coherency but by that point Ace had managed to help her finish washing her hair, get her out of the bathhouse and into clothes and work out what the problem was.

The problem turned out to be that Fox' father had just murdered her girlfriend, which was why she'd showed up on the Moby Dick looking for Ace in the middle of the night. Not just a 'friend' girlfriend, but her _lover_. That conjured up a very erotic mental image Ace had promptly banished to the deepest, darkest corner of his mind but would probably haunt his dreams for months to come. He hadn't known Fox swung that way. As she mumbled on it became clear that Mihawk had also been the cause of the premature deaths of most of her other conquests, including one guy she hadn't actually bothered with long enough to get physically intimate with. That boded badly for Ace.

"An' he didn't even ask me first!" Fox sniffed, fingers absently playing with Ace hair.

"You'd rather he'd have asked?" Ace asked a little faintly, unsure about her priorities.

Fox scowled, abruply enhancing the family resemblance between father and daughter. "They were _mine_. I picked them, I got attached to them and I broke it off with them when it became clear it wasn't going to work. But I still cared. If anyone had the right to kill them over the breakups it was me but he didn't even ask! Arrogant, thoughtless, idiot _man_; this is why mother never tried to patch things up with him, I bet."

Ace made note of the fact the Fox was as possessive of her associates as a dragon was of gold. "Have you told him that?"

Fox paused. "I should, shouldn't I?" She let go of him and rose to her feet, wiping her eyes with a sleeve. "I'll go and do that now."

"That might not-" Ace started, but gave up as she marched out of the cabin door. Fox was remarkably single-minded when she was upset, which was both better and worse than the scattered, temperamental nature that most other women shared when pissed off. Better because it could be predicted to a point; worse because you could see it coming and there was nothing you could do but hope you'd survive.

* * *

Marco had not known what to think when Fox shot out of the bathhouse and flew up the stairs but he knew it couldn't be anything good. While her sense of proper clothing and appropriate behaviour was a bit skewed compared to most people, Fox knew soap bubbles were _not_ proper dress and should have at least paused to grab a towel. Ace had sensibly grabbed two, wrapped one around his waist and hurried after her with the other so Marco also followed the wet, bubbly footprints, dropped jaws and bloody noses on the way to the deck.

The two men arrived just in time to see Fox launch her father into a wall with a haki-enhanced punch to the face and leave a visible mark. As Mihawk carefully raised a hand to his rapidly swelling face Fox just stood there, panting hard and dripping bubbles in the centre of a ring of dead silence as Pops and the other Division Commanders stared, expressions ranging between fascination and shock; Pops was actually frowning. Ace seized the moment and wrapped the towel he'd brought up around Fox, which apparently brought her back to earth as she accepted it, turned around and marched below deck again. Ace had shot Marco a quick, begging look then chased after her as one of Pops' nurses hurried over to check on the World's Greatest Swordsman.

The next hour was… tense. Mihawk accepted an ice pack for his eye and agreed to move the conversation indoors with Pops, Marco made sure everyone who'd seen Fox punch her father knew that it was an event to _never, ever _be mentioned _**ever **_to anyone who hadn't seen it themselves on pain of pain. They'd clearly intruded on a private discussion so it would stay private until they got the go-ahead otherwise. However seeing a naked woman punch Dracule Mihawk in the face was not something you could just un-see, so there were a lot of thoughtful faces on deck as the minutes dragged on.

Then Fox reappeared, fully dressed with tearstains on her face and a look of fierce determination. Marco divined that she now intended to finish the argument that she had run on deck to start and caught her attention.

"Your father's with Pops, yoi," he told her lightly, walking over to open the cabin door. "Feeling better?"

Fox snorted. "Not really. I want to get this over with." Marco nodded, letting her in and closing the door behind himself and the newly-arrived Ace.

* * *

"Why are you here?" Fox asked bluntly as soon as Mihawk turned to look at her.

"Lisska," Mihawk said coolly.

"Couldn't you just leave me alone?" Fox went on, "but no, you're my father so you have to hunt down everyone I've ever gotten involved with and kill them. Never mind that my bleedin' Devil Fruit Ability means I form stronger bonds with people than usual so I _felt_ you kill them! Do you have any idea what it's like to wake up in a cold sweat and just _know_ that someone you care about it dead?! Never mind that it was my own damn father who did the killing!" she paused, breathing heavily. "Just the one night stands I could have dealt with and I understood perfectly why you felt the need to try and take Sako's head off; I was fifteen at the time after all. But why the hell did you feel the urge to chase down the others?! I'm a grown-up! I'm allowed to make my own damn mistakes just like you and mother did! And let me point out that I'm yet to be quite that careless!"

"Lisska."

"Shut up! You killed Laila! You didn't even wait until we broke up; you hunted her down when I wasn't there and murdered her, you bastard!" Fox screamed, haki exploding from her and shaking the furniture. "Why the hell should I listen to you when all you seem interested in doing is killing the people I care about? Who's going to be next? Marco? Shanks? Jinbe? I'm _this close_ to going for broke and seeing if patricide is all it's cracked up to be!"

Silence rang as Fox panted, fists clenched.

"I did not intend to kill Laila," Mihawk said quietly.

Fox snorted. "So you stabbed her through the heart by accident? Pull the other one."

"I was not expecting a farmer to be so proficient with an urumi," Mihawk admitted.

Fox laughed bitterly. "That's it? This is the New World; people who can't use weapons die. Besides, after all of the swordsman you've killed for dating me I'd have thought you would have spotted a pattern."

"Sako was not a swordsman."

"I never dated Sako," Fox snapped.

"The widower on Kyuka wasn't a swordsman either."

"No, he was a D," Fox growled. "I actually _liked_ him; he treated me like a grown woman. Now his daughter's an orphan and it is my entire fault for letting my hormones get the better of me. I feel so _loved_."

"Lisska-"

"Fourteen people I tried to get close to! Fourteen! You killed eleven of them and the only reason Sako isn't dead as well is I was there to put his neck back together afterwards! I bet if Carlos hadn't drowned in a storm you'd have killed him too!" Fox threw her hands in the air. "I'm warning you Dracule Mihawk, kill anybody else carrying my mark and I'll stop making excuses for you and show you exactly what I was trained to be! World's Greatest Swordsman or not you still have to sleep!"

"I apologise," Mihawk said stiffly.

"Good. Now go away," Fox replied flatly, eyes fixed on the floor. "Killing you might break me but I'm still considering it."

The swordsman put on his hat, nodded politely at Whitebeard and left.

"Fox?" Marco asked carefully. Fox didn't move. Ace stepped closer and cautiously placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Limpet?" the Flame Logia said gently, using the nickname he'd given her about three months into their friendship. Fox curled into his touch and buried her face in his hair.

"Why does he have to be so _dense?_" she mumbled despairingly. Ace did not reply, wrapping an arm around her waist and playing with the short bangs at the nape of her neck to calm her down.

"Could you kill him?" Marco asked. Fox lifted her head to glare at the phoenix Zoan.

"I'm an _assassin_, Marco. I could kill you and Ace right now before your Pops could stop me and if I timed it right I could probably off him too. Killing my father wouldn't be all that hard technically; it's what it would cost me that would make it difficult." She closed her eyes again. "I don't want to do it but it's getting to the point where killing him would hurt less than suffering through him killing those few friends I have left." She huffed. "Maybe I should just bite the bullet and date Shanks. It's not like he'd say no to anything that involves tweaking my father's tail, never mind that he babysat me as a toddler."

Marco and Ace gaped and Whitebeard burst out laughing.

* * *

The infamous fight. Mihawk isn't the type to shout; he's too controlled. Fox more than makes up for it though.


	68. Summons

**Summons **

Luffy hadn't really known what to think when the snake lady had shown him the mark on her back and revealed her past as a slave, so he'd said the first thing that come into his head when she asked if it changed how he saw her:

"Look I already told you I hate those Tenryuubito… besides; my assassin was a slave before."

"You have an assassin?" the weird lady asked. "Why?"

"I've got a crew! Fox is part of it!" Luffy told her brightly. "She doesn't have a mark like that though." He paused, remembering. "She probably flayed it off! She was doing that for the other slaves at the Auction House when I punched that Tenryuubito."

"Flayed it off?" one of the other two woman repeated, sounding dazed.

"Yeah! Fox was made to eat Devil Fruit too and she can heal injuries so they don't scar. I bet she'd be happy to do that for you if you asked!" the rubberman said. "Wait, what did she tell me?" he paused, absently rubbing his ribs. "I can't remember…" Something about her name?

"I think I like you!" the snake lady told him with a giggle. "Say where it is you wish to go! My ship is yours to use. Perhaps once you are reunited with your crew you can introduce this Fox to me."

"Really?!" Awesome! Luffy promptly forgot he'd been trying to remember what Fox had told him.

He didn't remember until much later, when Elder Nyon told him about Ace' impending execution and he checked his brother's vivre card. Then a whole lot of things crashed into his mind all at once:

Fox being quiet and upset when Luffy said he wasn't going to help Ace;

The way Fox treated her hat, which was really Ace' hat;

Fox letting Ace kiss her outside Alabasta and later telling Luffy that his big brother was one of her nakama;

Fox kicking him in the ribs on Sabaody and telling him that if he called her by name, she'd hear and find him.

"Fox?" Wait, that wasn't her name. "Lisska? Dracule Lisska?" The spot on his throat she'd touched before Kuma made her vanish tingled slightly as he said her name out loud.

* * *

Fox had been knitting in Shanks' cabin when she felt the summons tug on her Devil Fruit Power. Putting the needles aside she grabbed her bag, scrawled a quick note so Shanks would know where she'd gone and let herself follow the tug. Life was everywhere, but it was easier for her to home in on beacons than to just go wherever. Getting back would be easy; Shanks had a beacon on him too.

The world dissolved then reformed as she emerged at the other end to darkness and tropical warmth.

"-isska?"

"You rang, Captain?" she teased as Luffy's eyes widened, taking in her loosely braided hair, lack of sunglasses and casual attire.

"Fox!" she had barely a second to brace herself and then her rubber-bodied captain was hanging off her neck and babbling about how amazing she was to have done that and was she alright and where had she been-! Fox ignored the babble and hugged him back, amazingly relieved he was still mostly in one piece, while she absently checked him for damage.

"Luffy, why do you feel like a fungus tried to kill you?"

Her captain stopped babbling and looked sheepish. "Eh, I ate this mushroom and it tried to eat me back?"

Fox lightly slapped the back of his head, her other hand still holding onto his arm and glowing slightly, healing residual damage and making sure he could fight off any other aggressive fungi in the future. "Idiot. What would happen to all of us if you died? None of us are cut out for Pirate King!"

"Sorry," Luffy said. "It was okay though! The nice ladies here cured me!"

"That was kind of them," Fox noted. "Speaking of which, where _is_ here?"

The elderly lady who'd been watching them replied. "This is the island of Amazon Lily."

Fox blinked. "Boa Hancock's turf?"

"You know of Hebihime?"

Fox shrugged. "My father is one of the Shichibukai, honoured elder. I try to keep track of the important things."

The elderly lady peered at her. "With those eyes you must be Hawk-Eyes' get. But your captain mentioned you were once enslaved?"

Fox frowned. She hadn't expected her captain to spread that around. "I fell afoul of Donflamingo when I was nine and got sold; I escaped when I was fifteen. How is that relevant?"

"Donflamingo? That I did not know; we must tell Hebihime," the old lady fretted.

"Wait! I want to go and save Ace!" Luffy blurted out, grabbing Fox' arm. "Can you help?"

Fox hesitated, deeply torn. She wanted to throw caution to the winds, she really did, but she had a baby to protect and her father would be at the execution. She couldn't face him across a battlefield without a proper mask and her more deadly secret was not one she was ready to share.

"Fox?"

She sat down. "Luffy, I want to," she told him. "But I promised Zoro I'd be careful. I'm pregnant, you see."

Luffy stopped pulling on her arm. "Pregnant? You and Zoro are going to be parents?" He stepped back and stared at her stomach. "You don't look pregnant."

"It hasn't even been a month yet Luffy," Fox informed her captain with a hint of exasperation.

"Oh. Well if you're pregnant of course you can't help," Luffy said. "Well, not fight. You'll fix up Ace when I've rescued him, right?"

"Ace is my nakama; of course I'll heal him if he needs it," Fox said. "But if you intend to rescue Ace there're things you need to know."

"Like?"

Fox fished the orange cowboy hat out of her bag and gave it to him. "I'm sorry for not telling you earlier."

Luffy froze for a moment, then slowly turned it over in his hands. "You, you knew?" he asked, staring at her with wide, hurt eyes.

"Your brother and I are best friends, Luffy. We use Beastie, the iguana, to exchange letters. When he brought me Ace' hat while we were at Thriller Bark I knew at once something was wrong and checking a newspaper just proved it. I was going to tell you as soon as you got back but then I had to stop Zoro from dying and after I was up and about again I heard you say you weren't going after him." Fox bowed her head. "I thought you knew at first, then I realised you didn't and hadn't even bothered to find out what was wrong. That hurt; you have to pay attention or you'll miss important things. So I didn't tell you. I just wrote to people who I knew would try and rescue Ace and wouldn't stand by and let him die. So you won't be the only person trying to rescue him."

Luffy clutched the hat. "You wrote to Ace' friends?"

Fox nodded. "His friends and my mother's family. Everyone I could think of who wouldn't mind breaking the law for him. I also wrote to Ace so he'd know people were coming to rescue him."

"You wrote to Ace? In prison?"

"Yep; he got it, don't worry." Fox grinned. "I'm good like that."

Luffy frowned at her. "You should have told me! I would have done something! I thought he was just having an adventure! I might be captain but I know I don't know everything! That's what I have my crew for! You have to tell me things!"

Fox fell to her knees and bowed her head. "I apologise. I should have known better." She stayed prostrate as Luffy walked over to her.

"It's okay," the rubberman said quietly. "You thought I didn't care, didn't you? And he's your nakama." He jammed the hat on her head. "You look after his hat; when I get him back he'll want to know it's safe."

"Do you need me for anything else while I'm here?" Fox asked, getting off the floor. "I'll need to go back soon."

"Back where?" Luffy asked curiously. Fox smirked happily.

"Kuma sent me to Shanks!"

"You know Shanks?" Luffy asked, a huge smile breaking out across his face.

Fox giggled. "I've known Shanks all my life, Luffy. I recognised the hat as soon as I saw you and knew you had to be the kid he was so enthusiastic about. He and my father go way back and he's always taken care of me when I needed it. So I do need to go back or else he'll worry."

"Sure! Say hi to him from me!" Luffy said with a grin.

"Before you go you should meet Hebihime," the elderly lady said firmly.

"Of course; I have to thank her for looking after my captain for me," Fox teased, twitching Luffy's hat over his eyes. "Goodness knows what would happen to him without a few smart women to keep an eye on him!"

* * *

Fox waited patiently outside the room where Boa Hancock had suddenly been taken ill, half of her mind following Zoro, Shanks and Ace. Tracking Ace was hardest as she'd never actually healed him, not even of bruises and scratches. She'd patched up Shanks once or twice after he'd gotten on her father's bad side and Zoro of course was so tangled up in her she couldn't get away from him, which she found more of a comfort than a problem. Zoro had finally worked out how to communicate with words in her mind and they were discussing where her swordsman had ended up: Kuraigana Island. Fox wasn't sure whether she should be pleased or terrified that her lover had wound up on her father's doorstep.

"Fox? Fox!" the assassin blinked.

"Yes Luffy?" she asked.

"Come on! I want to introduce you!" Fox let herself be dragged into the bedroom where two large women were standing beside a bed with a very beautiful and ill-looking woman in it. "This is Fox! She's part of my crew and she's a really great healer!" Luffy said brightly.

"You are a healer?" One of the large women asked.

"Just of physical injuries; I can't do anything about illnesses," Fox specified.

"Luffy mentioned you," the sick woman said breathily. "He said you were a slave."

"I was," Fox said evenly, "not that anyone could prove it. A man with a sharp knife saw to that, at my request."

"So you truly had the brand flayed away?" the fatter of the two big women asked.

"Why so many questions?" Fox asked lightly. The three women exchanged glances and the ill lady, who she now recognised as being Boa Hancock, turned to look her in the eye.

"My sisters and I were once slaves. Please, would you free us from the shadow of our oppressors and the Hoof of the Dragon, Fox-san?"

Fox blinked. "Of course I will my lady Shichibukai; now?"

Boa Hancock smiled. "Thank-you."

Fox produced a knife from her sash. "Don't thank me yet; this will really hurt. Who's going first?"

* * *

Luffy and Fox on Amazon Lily.


	69. Calm

**Calm **

"Are you still breathing, Ace?"

The pirate blinked, glancing up at his wholly unexpected visitor. He'd been going over what he remembered of how Fox used haki and trying to replicate it. She had offered to teach him a bit once but Ace hadn't been interested in something that took years to learn when he had his Devil Fruit Power. Now he felt like a moron: if he had been able to use haki even half as well as Fox he wouldn't have lost to Teach. Since haki was innate he could practice it regardless of the Sea Stone shackles immobilising him, but it had proved sadly hit and miss. He just couldn't use it consistently and the one he really wanted to know, the one which would stop them from killing him, was the one he couldn't grasp at all.

What was Garp doing visiting him anyway?

"Gramps?" Yes, it was the old man. Weird. "I didn't think I was allowed visitors," Ace croaked. "If I'd known I'd have asked some people I actually like to stop by."

Garp chuckled. "I see you haven't lost your fire, Ace."

Ace grinned through the tacky blood caking one half of his face. "I promised a pretty lady I wouldn't let prison get me down," he said dryly. "Self-pity is apparently very unattractive. Besides, I have my answer now."

Garp tensed, clearly remembering that long-ago question Ace had asked about whether he should ever have been born. "You have?"

Ace nodded, remembering what Fox had said and done after worming his doubts and uncertainty out of him. There was a reason he openly claimed her as one of his best friends; she was certainly his best and closest still-living friend. "My mother's Will was for me to live; who am I to deny that? To honour her I will live the best I can, for as long as I can, and spawn some grandkids for her to fawn over from the afterlife," he said firmly, remembering Fox' promise to hide any children he ever had to the best of her considerable ability. "That is _my_ Will." He didn't have any kids yet –Fox had kindly checked his various past conquests for him– but he would. He was all that was left of his mother and he would not shame her by being the reason the Portgas line ended. Glancing up at Garp Ace smirked at the slightly concerned look on the old man's face. "I'm not going to die any time soon Gramps; just you wait and see." He paused. "How's Pops doing?"

Garp shook his head. "He's coming for you, boy."

Ace narrowed his eyes. "Should I worry about someone trying to kill me early?"

The old Vice-Admiral shook his head. "It wouldn't make any difference at this point; nothing will stop Whitebeard now. We have already angered the ruler of the seas."

Ace said nothing. Pops was the father he'd always wanted and for him to be coming to rescue Ace despite his having left against the old man's orders warmed him as much as it worried him; Pops was getting old. Though honestly it was Spitfire he was seriously worried about; she would cheerfully tell the world they were related by blood and then she'd have the Marines after her in force.

"Ah, I do wish you and Luffy had become great Marine officers like I wanted you to;" Garp reminisced, "to think you would both do the very opposite and become terrible rogues! Oh, yes; come to think of it… I told Luffy about his father. He was rather surprised to learn he even had one!"

Ace snorted. He'd known who Luffy's father was for years; Fox had mentioned once in passing that the Revolutionary Dragon was actually the son of Garp the Fist and Ace had realised at once that the man had to be his little brother's father.

"It doesn't matter whether we know it or not," he croaked, "the fact remains that both Luffy and I have the blood of world-renowned criminals flowing through our veins; how could we ever become Marines?" Fox couldn't either, not that she'd ever wanted to, and her father actually worked under the World Government! "However I took the name 'Portgas' from my mother, whom I owe a great debt. I don't care one jot for that half of my blood that came from my so-called father." He really didn't, especially after Spitfire had confirmed for him that she, not he, was Roger's heir as the Pirate King's firstborn. Ace was his mother's heir in everything, which explained why he so hated being reminded of his father. He was the youngest of six kids Roger had sired, for goodness sake, and not even the only boy! He was just the only one the Government had found out about so his life had been hell! "He's nothing to me."

"Well I suppose that makes sense," Garp conceded.

"And that's why, Gramps," Ace rasped with a smile, remembering his first meeting with Pops, "I only have one father, and that father is Whitebeard!"

Garp frowned. Ace didn't care; he owed his blood father less than nothing. He'd actually gone through a full formal disinheritance ritual with Fox' help so as to sever ties with Roger properly; it had really done wonders for his temper.

Having nothing more to say to the man who had supposedly raised him, Ace closed his eyes and went back to recalling what little he knew of Busoshoku Haki. He'd been promised a rescue; all he had to do was wait.

* * *

Fox went through another set of dance exercises, cursing the presence of Marine ships lurking on the horizon. She couldn't go on deck and risk being seen, so she had to stay indoors and keep herself out of trouble. In the four days since briefly spending time with Luffy on Amazon Lily –only Luffy would manage to win over someone as cruel and frigid as Boa Hancock– she had done a lot of knitting and gone through all her combat kata twice before putting aside her distaste and moving on to the dance routines she'd been forced to learn as a slave. Fox loved to move but dancing had been permanently soured by her past experiences; she rarely indulged in the intricate and beautiful routines she knew by heart, preferring the rough and ready improvisation of people who'd had a bit too much to drink.

She'd danced properly exactly once since escaping slavery, as a birthday present for Whitebeard a few years ago. He'd both liked it and understood without asking why she didn't show off more often. Zoro knew she could dance –it frequently featured in her dreams– but he also knew better than to pry into why she preferred not to. The audiences in those kind of dreams were explanation enough.

She did have tentative plans to give her swordsman a private performance before she started increasing though; she wanted to see how far she could push him before he jumped her.

Fox missed Zoro. She could talk to him any time she wanted but she was a highly tactile individual and she missed his warmth at her side, his breath on her throat, his body pressed against hers in the lazy hours after lunch and his hands on her skin at any hour of the day. Gods above, how Fox missed Zoro touching her. He had wonderful hands, strong and heavily calloused from years of swordsmanship and always so warm…

She sighed. Zoro wasn't here and even with Shanks sailing toward Paradise with every intention of reaching Marineford in time to catch the tail-end of the inevitable fight that would break out once Ace' execution started, she probably wouldn't see her lover again for at least a week, probably longer. Her eyes strayed over to a very specific wooden chest by the bed.

Before leaving Luffy to storm Impel Down she had given him a bit of paper similar to Vivre Card and told him to use it to summon help, if he really found himself needing it. She'd told him it was a favour from a fellow assassin and would summon 'him' for two hours' worth of work, no questions asked. To activate it Luffy had to tear a corner off the paper at least half an hour before he needed the help, then tear it in half when he wanted his help to appear. Then it was just a matter of telling the person who showed up what he wanted them to do.

The chest across the cabin contained her killing suit, Phantom Fox mask and her sword, retrieved from Swift Hunter. When she felt Luffy tear the corner from the paper she would get changed and then await her summons. She could not fight a battle against her father without giving herself away, but her alter ego was a true assassin and cared nothing for anything save fulfilling orders. The Phantom Fox was almost an alternate personality, making it practically impossible even for haki users to identify her when she took up the mask. There was a good chance Shanks would find out the truth she had spent so many years hiding, but Ace' life was on the line and he was more important to her than keeping this particular secret from Shanks. He wouldn't judge her for it.

* * *

Everything is falling in place, but waiting is never easy.


	70. Preparation

**Preparation**

Fox had not taken part in the fight that had broken out when Kaido had tried to attack Whitebeard's fleet from behind and Shanks had intercepted him; Red-Hair had made it clear that she was to stay out of sight and trouble as much as possible. Fox had therefore slept through the initial manoeuvring and posturing then hidden herself below decks in the infirmary as the first shot was fired and a fight broke out in earnest. She knew her way around a first aid kit well enough and had a lot of practice at nursing, so she just did as the Red Force' doctor told her as the wounded trickled in. She patched bleeding wounds back together so the lightly injured could return to the fight, helped set bones and stitch muscle, slathered paste over burns and pulled out splinters until she was sweaty, bloodied and tired and the sounds of battle had faded away to nothing. Her last patient was Shanks himself, who was shoved at her by Beckman. The redhead was just a bit singed and had large wood splinters sticking out of his shoulder so Fox briskly went to work, ignoring the childish whimpers of pain as she yanked out the thin wooden spikes and disinfected the war wound.

"It's just splinters, you big baby," she growled as he twitched, preventing her from pulling the last one out all in one go. "It's not like you lost an eye or anything."

"But splinters hurt!" Shanks whined.

"Suck it up," Fox snarled, jabbing a pressure point in his neck and repositioning the tweezers once he was temporarily paralysed. With her patient no longer wriggling the last splinter came out easily and she disinfected it carefully, pulling out strands of fabric that had been pushed into the injury. Job done, she slapped a plaster over the open wound and freed up the pressure point so Shanks could move again.

"There, all done."

"That was dirty," Shanks grumbled, carefully rotating his shoulder and neck to get the feeling back, but Fox knew he was just playing around now.

"It worked though, didn't it?" she pointed out. "Is it safe for me to have a shower yet or do I need to wait a while longer?"

Shanks glanced at her, eyes flicking to take in the dried blood caked on her face, in her hair, up her arms almost to the shoulder and spattered over her front. "No, we won!" he said brightly. "Feel free to take as long as you like getting clean. Use the private wash house rather than the group showers though; I don't want anyone to walk in on you by accident."

"Fine." The bath house was just for Shanks and his elite rather than the wider crew and was very nice indeed. As most of those elite were currently busy making sure everything was shipshape and in order Fox would have time to bathe properly before they started thinking about more mundane things like cleanliness. Just as she was leaving however an arm caught her belt and pulled her back.

"Lisska," Shanks said quietly, meeting her eyes with a serious smile, "thank-you. You didn't have to help out."

Fox rolled her eyes. "I wouldn't be me if I didn't, Shanks," she told him. "How could I not look after my family?"

Shanks brightened ridiculously. "I'm family?"

"Of course you are; why else would I be here if you weren't?"

Shanks grinned wider, teasing humour seeping into his expression. "To drive your father around the bend, of course. Or to finally do something about that crush you never grew out of."

Fox flushed, but met his eyes brazenly. "Why captain are you flirting with me? A pregnant woman? For shame."

"Dahahahahaha!" Shanks laughed, letting go of her. "Off you go then."

Fox fled. She really thought she'd managed to keep that crush under wraps but Shanks was way sneaker than most people gave him credit for. Bastard.

* * *

Gol D. Spitfire perched on the top of Runt, her favourite Sea King, and pondered the situation. A number of her apprentices and foster siblings had agreed to do all they could to help her rescue her baby brother, but she knew Whitebeard and his allies would be trying to help too, so she had to make sure they weren't left hanging. Spitfire's original plan had been to rescue Ace by herself while he was being transported from Impel Down to Marineford, but with the currents being what they were she'd have to escape past the Marine base anyway and with Ace in shackles they'd have to find someone who knew how to use lock picks.

Kicking her fins idly, Spitfire wondered what to do. She was going to rescue Ace, of course; family came first after all. However not being equipped for a chase meant she had to grab him while the Marines were busy, which meant waiting until he was on the execution stand. She had enough capable merfolk and fishmen with her to be able to throw around enough seawater for Devil Fruit Users not to be a problem, so the trick would be drawing attention away from Ace until her sneakier helpers could smuggle him away.

Spitfire knew she wasn't sneaky. She nonetheless knew the value of sneaky. Sneaky was good for escaping and escaping was what Ace needed to do. The best way for her to rescue Ace was to show the Marines that she was a bigger threat than her baby brother, cause a commotion with her pets sinking ships and eating people and have the sneaky people get her baby brother off the execution stand while nobody was looking. Fox would probably be there, so she would help with the sneaking.

The angelshark mermaid sprawled back on her pet's snout, her twenty foot length dwarfed in comparison to his three hundred foot head. Runt looked like a cross between an eel, a hyena and a small mountain range to the casual observer; Spitfire had raised him from the egg and loved him dearly. Split tails kicked in the air idly as the bottle-green-haired mermaid's eyebrows dropped and her lips pulled back into a fierce, toothy grin that made her look way too much like her father. She knew what she would do; she'd get everyone to Marineford right now and have them lie in wait. Disguises would be necessary too, so they'd have to stop by Sabaody first to raid Pearl's closets for trousers and boots. Better to not have the Marines notice they were mermaids until the last moment.

Still grinning, the mermaid known among her kindred as 'the Queen of Kings' kicked her pet into motion. She loved showing off and this would be the biggest stage she'd ever get.

* * *

Ace was getting nervous. He wasn't too surprised that his rescue hadn't come yet –it would be way easier to get him away from the Marines once he was on the surface again– but the unexpected visit from Boa Hancock had rattled him. Why was Luffy of all people trying to break into Impel Down? He didn't want his little brother to die! Worry had completely taken over his mind and not even Jinbe's steady presence could soothe it again. Fox had said she was looking after Luffy, so did his little brother's presence mean Fox was here too? Or had they gotten separated?

Ace groaned. He hoped Fox wasn't here; Jinbe was oddly protective of the woman he called 'Scamp' and would be very cross with anyone dragging her into a hellhole like Impel Down. Ace still remembered the time Fox had broken up a minor slaving ring and been scolded by the Knight of the Sea for 'recklessness'. Jinbe took his duty to Fox as her sensei very seriously and a good number of less well-informed pirates had fallen foul of the whale-shark fishman as a result.

"Ace-san," Jinbe said, interrupting the other pirate's thoughts, "I don't know much about that woman but surely you'd be better off assuming she was lying."

"What, you want me to believe she came all this way just to lie to me?!" Ace exploded. "I'm sorry," he added more quietly, "but look Jinbe, this is just what my brother's like, he's always doing crazy stuff like this. Ever since he was a kid; he never does anything but make me worry about him. I though Fox was keeping an eye on him for me, but if he's here…"

"Scamp is with your brother?" Oops, Ace hadn't meant to say that. Jinbe sounded _displeased_.

"Fox is on Luffy's crew now, but if he's here… I really don't know," Ace sighed. "She promised she'd rescue me but I really, really hope she isn't here. She knows better."

"I should hope so," Jinbe muttered, looking as concerned as Ace felt.

* * *

Time drags on ever closer to the deadline.


	71. Progression

**Progression **

Fox was just getting dressed after her bath when she felt her captain's health take a sudden dip. He'd been steadily draining her for hours, enough to kill her had she not eaten a Logia Devil Fruit that essentially gave her unlimited vital energy. Fox could get tired, but it was a tiredness of the mind needing to rest and from pushing the body into damaging itself rather than a lack of resources to go on. If necessary she could fight for days on end, something she had proved to herself on a small and highly hostile New World island once. Poison couldn't kill her as she outlasted its effects; sickness could not fell her as her body outmatched it at every turn. Injury only put her out of commission for the time it took for the damage to repair itself and no matter the strength and skill of her enemies they could not match her stamina. Drawing deeply from her Devil Fruit Fox had once killed a Sea King with her bare hands without even using haki; she wasn't exactly immortal but she came close.

Having Luffy as a captain would make anybody worry, so Fox made sure he never ran out of energy. So long as her captain had the will to carry on, he would not lack the strength to do so. It wasn't much, but considering he was currently raiding Impel Down he needed all the help she could give him.

Carefully adjusting her body so that her Logia powers ran more strongly through her but taking care that her baby was not affected, Fox scrounged a large meal from the kitchen and retreated to Shanks' cabin again. Where Luffy was it was some stupidly early hour of the morning, but if her senses had the right of it he'd just been poisoned. Fox did not like healing poison damage; it was a long and tedious business. First the poison had to burn itself out in tearing the victim's body apart, then the body had to be assisted in putting itself back together. Luffy was far stronger than he looked even without her surreptitious assistance, but without further outside help it would take most of a week to recover from _this._ Crawling into bed, Fox carefully twisted her Ability again so that it burned hotly in the core of her being, simmering under her skin just out of sight. This way Luffy could take all he needed while she slept without her little moth being at risk. Closing her eyes and automatically feeling for the connection to Zoro, Fox dropped off.

* * *

She woke abruptly to sudden, blinding pain that doubled her up and knocked her out of bed.

"Lisska?" Fox leant into the warm, scarred hand stroking her face and breathed harshly through her nose, trying not to throw up.

"It's not me," she gasped, shutting down the part of the connection tying her to Luffy that enabled her to feel him and widening her captain's access to her reserves. It felt like he needed it. She'd experienced this kind of pain before, back when she'd still been a slave and her owner had been experimenting with her healing ability. She'd been less resistant to poisons when she was younger and puberty hadn't helped.

"Who was it then?" Fox kept her eyes closed and gripped Shanks' shoulder, letting him left her to her feet.

"My captain is in trouble again," she murmured as she was dragged back into bed. "I hope he gets himself out of it in time; bad enough that Ace needs rescuing without Luffy getting himself in a fix as well."

"You felt Luffy's pain?" Fox nodded absently, half her attention going towards reassuring Zoro that she was okay. He'd been woken too.

"I'm lending him energy; he won't die of it," she added to Shanks, remembering that her crazy captain had a special place in Red-Hair's heart as well. Her bedmate's arm tightened around her waist.

"Go back to sleep Lisska; you need to conserve your strength." Fox agreed, so she let her mind wander back into the darkness.

* * *

Shanks was worried. Lisska had woken briefly, early in the morning, but hadn't stirred since. Now it was evening again and she was still dead to the world. Her Devil Fruit meant sleeping the day away wasn't as serious as it might be; it wouldn't hurt her or the baby to get a bit more rest. But Shanks suspected the real reason his best friend's daughter was still asleep was to do with the pain that had woken her before she plunged deeper into unconsciousness.

The Redheaded Yonko had seen Lisska do truly incredible things with her Ability and even more incredible things without it –he hadn't known you could use haki like that– but it was the apparently little things that she could do that really humbled him. According to Lisska Luffy was in Impel Down trying to rescue Ace, well over a day's sailing away, yet his little eyas was not only keeping an eye on her captain's condition but doing her best to keep him alive. Shanks had laughed in delight when he'd got the letter from Lisska saying she'd joined Luffy's crew and felt no small amount of relief: Luffy was enough like his own captain had been to take good care of her and Lisska would take care of the rubberman in return. Her loyalty was the stuff of legends really; the things she did for friends and family boggled the mind.

Shanks hoped Luffy did manage to get himself out of trouble before they reached Marineford: Lisska's idea of what constituted a rescue tended towards the extreme. She was a bit like her father that way with her 'no such thing as overkill' attitude. Not that Shanks disagreed exactly, but violence wasn't always the answer. The redhead sighed, remembering the incident involving the young lady from Wano, a small pirate fleet new to the New World and an attempted ransom; attempted because none of the pirates had lived long enough to deliver the demand. Lisska had made several allies that day and earned herself a title that commanded fear and respect –mostly fear– all over Wano: they called her the Pale Kunoichi. Wano was very male-dominated, but they respected the kind of strength Lisska had, for all that it was not something discussed in public. She was the kind of person who worked undercover for a powerful lord, enforcing his will from the shadows. Samurai did the day-to-day stuff, kept order and were the public face of the daimyo; ninja lurked in the dark, spied on their master's enemies and quietly dealt with those who sought a more covert path to power.

Shanks had to admit that Lisska was more of a kunoichi than she was a pirate. It made him wonder what kind of adventures Luffy would have with an assassin as part of his crew; the mere presence of a genuine professional killer tended to make a person's enemies very, very nervous and among pirates, nervous was frequently synonymous with proactive.

* * *

Time rolls on and Luffy's prison raid progresses, with far-reaching effects.


	72. Poised

**Poised **

Ace sat slumped on the chair he was chained to, gazing at the sky and fretting silently. Luffy really had broken in to Impel Down and was likely now trying to break out again; seriously, only his little brother would do something that crazy. The worried older pirate had tried to go back inside when he'd heard the announcement, but weeks of short rations and Sea Stone chains had made him weak as a kitten. The only thing keeping him going right now was the knowledge that Fox would never let Luffy rot in prison and the glimpse he had caught of a very specific Sea King as he was brought on board the Marine vessel that was carrying him to Marineford.

The Sea King he had seen was one of Spitfire's: his big sister had named it Trudi for some inane reason. Trudi looked like the bastard lovechild of a hummingbird and sea slug and was just large enough to sink the Moby Dick if she ever tried to climb onto it. Trudi was also startlingly smart, very poisonous and very, very mean. She bullied wild Sea Kings something dreadful, which was probably why she had been left out here at the edge of the Calm Belt to wait for Ace as the local wildlife wouldn't give her any trouble at all.

Even now as they approached the Gates of Justice Trudi was likely cruising along under the ship, shadowing him. Ace had met several of his big sister's pets, some of which were too big to really get your mind around, but Trudi gave him the creeps because she stalked you. Runt was brash and straightforward, which was rather terrifying on a creature as large as a good-sized island, but he was also fairly simple and friendly provided Spitfire liked you. Trudi on the other hand was just about small enough to follow a ship around without being conspicuous and had once done so to the Whitebeard Pirates for an entire month, which had driven them all half-crazy with paranoia until Spitfire came back and revealed what was wrong. Ace was not the only member of the crew who thought the monster had been doing it on purpose.

Trudi being here meant Spitfire was already in Marineford and had left her smallest pet behind to keep an eye on him as he arrived; meaning his rescue was in the works. Ace hoped Spitfire wouldn't mind rescuing Luffy as well if it came to it.

* * *

Fox woke late on the morning of Ace' execution and immediately set about preparing herself for her captain's summons. First she ate a large breakfast, then had a thorough wash with a special soap that neutralised smell. She only ever used it when she intended to wear her killing suit, as it was part of how she disguised her gender. There were a small but significant number of people who could identify a person through smell; Zoan users were only the tip of the iceberg. A good disguise covered more than just your face. Fox then braided her hair tight against her skull, coiled and pinned it in place and put on a loose grey outfit to warm up in. She would not put on her Phantom Fox outfit until she felt the initial summons from Luffy, but there was plenty that needed doing before then. She had to be ready for action.

"What're you doing, Eyas?" Shanks asked, pushing the door open.

Fox did not pause in her exercises. "Keeping myself from worrying," she replied easily; it was true enough. Shanks had never stopped calling her by that nickname and likely never would; he never stopped seeing the baby she had been. Fox didn't mind too much. It was reassuring to know she had not changed so completely that the babyish nickname was no longer appropriate.

"You slept a full day away," Red-Hair noted. "Feeling better?"

"Much," Fox said candidly. "Everything is in motion now; it's all going to hinge on timing."

"I promise we won't be late," Shanks told her with a grin. "Don't overstress yourself, Eyas."

Fox snorted. "Like I could."

"Dahahaha! First time for everything!" He saw himself out. Fox knew he hadn't taken her words at face value, just as she hadn't taken his that way either. Shanks knew she was up to something, but he also recognised she was a grown woman and was allowed to do whatever she wanted. Especially considering she was only a guest on his ship and didn't have to follow orders. He still worried about her though, which she appreciated and tried to respect. But Ace and Luffy were her priority right now, so Shanks would have to cope.

* * *

As the Gates of Justice just outside Impel Down closed behind Luffy and the ship Crocodile and the fishman that knew Ace had helped him commandeer, the Straw-Hat pulled the bit of paper Fox had given him out of his hat band as he wiped his nose on his arm. Bon Clay had saved them again; Luffy wasn't sure what to think really. But he had to save Ace and they would catch up soon, which meant it was finally time to use the favour his assassin had given him.

Bounding up to stand next to the large fishman, Luffy neatly tore a thin strip off the edge of the thick paper, remembering Fox' precise instructions: _tear off a little bit at least half an hour before you need the help, then tear it in half when the moment arrives. Then you will have exactly two hours of my colleague's time in which he will do exactly as you ask. Be careful to word your requests precisely._

Fox had stressed that 'exactly' and 'precisely' so Luffy knew he'd have to take care. Certainly he'd have to make sure his help, whoever they were, understood he didn't want everyone to be killed. Fox very nicely didn't go out of her way to kill people who got in the way but she did that because she knew he didn't like it. The guy who owed her a favour probably wouldn't care, so he'd have to remember to ask.

"You have given me another chance to save Ace!" the fishman told Luffy as he steered the battleship towards Marineford. "I am forever in your debt!"

"Aw, come on!" Luffy replied, turning around and shoving the paper scrap back into his hat band. "There's no need for that! It's reassuring for me too, having you along! You're as strong as hell!"

"You can call me Jimbe," the fishman said. "I was a Shichibukai, but they have certainly stripped me of my title by now. I intend to go all-out at Marine Headquarters! To honour Okama-kun's last wish I shall definitely rescue Ace!"

"Whaaa?!" Luffy shouted. "Holy Guacamole you're a Shichibukai? So that's why you're so strong!" the rubberman paused, remembering a conversation from well over a week previously. "Hey, are you Fox' uncle Jinbe who taught her fishman karate?"

Jinbe nodded. "If your Fox is also called Lisska, then yes."

"Oh, cool!" Luffy said brightly. "She promised to introduce me if we met you but you've introduced yourself now! She wanted to come and help me rescue Ace but she couldn't, so she's staying with Shanks. She did promise to heal Ace once we rescued him though, so that's good."

"It is a relief to know she is staying out of trouble," Jinbe agreed. "I would have expected her to hurry into trouble after Ace; they are very attached to each-other."

"Well she wanted to," Luffy said quietly, sidling closer, but she's pregnant so she can't."

"Ah." Jinbe frowned. "How… fortuitous. Did she mention by whom?"

"You're not cross with her are you?" Luffy asked.

"No, just surprised," Jinnbe said calmly. "When I last saw her five months ago she did not mention having a lover at all."

"Well she hasn't been with Zoro for very long really," the rubberman pondered aloud. "Just a bit over a month. But they've been acting like two halves of one person after what happened on Thriller Bark and I don't think that's going to change."

"That explains a lot," Jinbe muttered. "Roronoa Zoro, you say? Perhaps he will survive then."

* * *

The clock ticks closer to Execution Hour.


	73. Committed

**Committed**

Spitfire tensed as her little brother was led up onto the execution stand. He looked a mess, dried blood and bruises caking his right side and scratches everywhere. He was still mobile though and the way he walked proved he didn't have any internal damage that could complicate a rescue. The mermaid had staked out a convenient attic with a good view of the execution stand but was further away than she had initially wanted; as her apprentices had bravely pointed out to her, she was the distraction, not the rescue. Her little force were scattered amongst the houses closest to the shore and two foolhardy souls had even mugged a pair of Marines for their uniforms so they could stake out the back of the stand. Considering Hotate was half-fishman, he was taking a real risk there.

Runt was lurking around the back of the island, the newly-arrived Trudi was staking out a ship in the bay and both Ripper and Snapper were close by as well but remaining outside the central bay. Jaws was hiding on the seabed at the bottom of said bay waiting for his cue and Snouty was out of range of the probable fight but well within hearing distance for when they needed to run for it. Snouty was the only one of her pets that could carry large numbers of people who couldn't breathe underwater as he had this trick with bubbles that enabled him to pack people up in them for transport, a bit like flutter-kick coating. If they had to leave in a hurry Spitfire would call him, he would grab everyone close by and parcel them up. Then when they were well out of reach of pursuit she could work out who she had to give back to which captains. Much more efficient than trying to get everyone back on the right ships.

Spitfire wiggled her fins in her boots, twisted her trousers for additional comfort and adjusted the red coat hanging over her shoulders. The whole point of the coat was to exacerbate her already uncanny resemblance to her father, just as her hair was tied back in a loose tail without her usual shall ornaments and why she was wearing a simple white corset top under the coat rather than her preferred armour. Tempest had pronounced the resemblance 'freaky' which, since she was one of just three pirate-born mermaids who were old enough to remember Roger properly, was sufficient endorsement. Idly loosening her oversized cutlass, the twenty-foot woman peered outside again. She wasn't very good with haki but she could do Fox' odd Colour of Concealment trick; she'd learnt it so as to creep up on people and scare them shitless. It would come very handy now that she wanted to cause mass panic.

Wiggling out of the window and strolling out towards the open space behind the cannon emplacements, completely unnoticed by the Marines dashing about, Gol D. Spitfire felt her blood heat in anticipation of the coming battle. Today was a good day to fight.

* * *

As soon as Fox felt Luffy tear the edge off the paper she'd given him she locked the cabin door, opened her chest and set about dressing in her white assassin outfit, moving calmly and methodically as she entered the proper mindset. First the undergarments: a lightly corseted vest to conceal her breasts, padding to modify her silhouette, close-fitting shorts with a high waist so her belts wouldn't chafe. Then long tabi, laced leggings, a fitted shirt with strategically placed slits for ease of movement and the first layer of weaponry harness. Then a second shirt, this one more like a kimono, loose trousers held in place with a belt and a sash over the top with more weapons hidden in the layers and her boots. Next were her gloves, made of Sea King leather for strength and flexibility, which were laced over the undershirt and held in place by knife sheathes.

Fox paused at this point, quickly performing a series of highly acrobatic stretches to check everything was in place and nothing was loose. Then she moved on to tighten the trouser cuffs so they could be wrapped and tucked into her boots, add an extra sash diagonally across her body to keep Zanchou in place, neatly wrap her hooded scarf around her head and neck to hide what little skin was still showing then finally fasten a waist-length cape across her shoulders and loosely buckle it at her throat. A sharp tug would pull the cape away entirely, but unless that happened it was useful for disguising her movements and distracting her opponents.

Every last garment was ivory white and completely opaque. Slipping the last few weapons into place Fox straightened her back, set her shoulders and lifted her mask out of its bag.

The Fox mask wasn't actually porcelain: it was bone. When she'd snapped and gone on her killing spree it had grown over her face all by itself as a manifestation of the protective camouflage she'd spent her time as a slave developing to hide her real name and background from her owner. When Spitfire had fished her out of the sea after she had jumped off the Red Line it had come off, but she'd been unable to discard it. It was part of her, not a very healthy part but part of her still. It was the part of her that protected her most damaged and fragile areas, Death Refined. Part of why she'd recovered so well from her terrible experiences was that her vulpine shadow was still there to fall back on if things went too badly wrong.

It melded to her skin when she donned it; while so masked she could not see, speak or even breathe. Her Devil Fruit Ability made the latter less than no problem at all and the former two weren't all that important for an assassin anyway. Eyes could be deceived after all and if a situation got to the point of calling an assassin then speech was clearly superfluous. An assassin, more than any other, was a slave. In Fox' case her Phantom was her slave, a part of herself that did her bidding and the bidding of those she trusted enough to lend it to. Her gloved fingers traced the surface of the mask and the facial markings that were the only colour in her entire outfit, the streaks running from ear to eye-socket and down the sides of the snout that were the colour of drying blood.

Behind her the door creaked, then clicked open; the lock was faulty. She did not turn to face Shanks as he paused on the threshold.

* * *

"Lisska?" Shanks whispered, staring at the stark white figure standing by the window with its back to him. It didn't look like the little Eyas, barely even felt like her, but there was nobody else it could be.

"Shanks." It was her. He shut the cabin door firmly behind him and she half turned, giving him a good look both at her clothing and the mask resting in one hand.

Lisska never wore white, just as she hardly ever wore black. Her clothes might have white patterns or detailing but she avoided the colour otherwise, claiming it made her look washed out. She avoided black for a different reason altogether: her father wore black and it made her look even more like Mihawk than usual. The only other colour she stayed away from was red, as that too was what her father usually wore. Now seeing the ghost standing in his cabin, a ghost that had an incredibly large bounty and a very long list of bodies to its name, Shanks suddenly understood why Lisska never wore white.

White was for death and killing.

She had been fifteen when she earned that bounty. It physically hurt Shanks to think about it.

"Lisska?"

"It's Fox, Shanks," she corrected him quietly, voice never changing from that soft monotone. "I first became the nickname when I was nine, to protect myself as best I could, and over time I became it. Lisska is the beloved daughter of two very powerful people and given time I could have grown into myself as Lisska, but then my enslavement happened and I needed to keep that part of me safe. Foxes are tricksters and above all survivors; I didn't quite gnaw my own leg off to escape the trap I found myself caught in but the metaphor is an apt one." She sighed. "I've been Fox ever since really. Maybe when my baby is born Lisska will really come out again."

A lot of things suddenly made sense to Shanks, like why she'd always introduced herself to people by the baby nickname her mother had barely used ever since escaping Mariejois. It was who she was now.

"Will you still be my Eyas?"

A faint twitch lifted the corner of her mouth. "That's for you to decide, Shanks. I've not changed from yesterday and I'll likely be the same tomorrow."

"Who knows?" He inclined his head at the outfit. She lifted the mask so the sunlight caught it.

"Spitfire. Me. Zoro." She shifted slightly, the sword hilt at her shoulder rising and falling. "Tempest suspects something but she knows better than to ask."

"Your lover knows?"

"He's the only person I've ever told. Spitfire fished me out of the sea after I jumped off the Red Line and Tempest helps me arrange contracts through the Sea Network." She finally looked up to meet his eyes, her expression distant and fey. "Do what you will." She raised the mask to her face and all hint of personality, gender and humanity faded from her haki like morning mist.

Shanks stared at the assassin standing in his cabin for an instant before the Phantom Fox vanished into a small ball of light which swiftly faded away. Red-Hair raised his hand to his face and groaned quietly.

"What a tangle."

* * *

And we're off.


	74. Chaos

**Chaos**

Ace twitched as Fleet Admiral Sengoku joined him on the execution stand. He knew more about the man than most, having been raised partly by Garp, and knew he felt that simply being the son of a criminal was reason enough for condemnation. As the man addressed his troops Ace let the little voice in the back of his head –which sounded more and more like Fox every passing day– say exactly what it thought of _that_.

"Ace. Tell me the name of your father!"

Ace scowled. Like hell! He'd disinherited himself for a damn reason! "My father? At a time like this? My father is Whitebeard!"

"He is not!" Sengoku snapped. Ace ground his teeth.

"Yes he is! Whitebeard is my only father! I have no other!" movement caught his eye down below and he glimpsed a hint of red amongst the white Marine coats; a tall, curvaceous figure over three times the height of a normal man.

Sengoku hadn't seen it; he was droning on: "Back then we searched as if our lives depended on it, searching for the possibility that there existed on that island a child of that man based on nothing but the tiniest of leads from Cipher Pol. We investigated all newborn children, all children who were yet to be born and all of their mothers, but ultimately found nothing."

Investigated and found nothing, hm? Ace knew better: they'd killed a whole lot of newborns and pregnant women in their paranoia. Assholes.

"Or so we thought." Sengoku continued. "But out of pure obstinacy your mother risked her life to perform a certain trick with regard to your birth, and it was that trick that deceived our eyes. In South Blue, there lies an island by the name of Baterilla. Your mother's name was Portgas D. Rouge. She performed a feat that we could never hope to imagine and out of devotion to her child, bore him in her womb for a full twenty months!"

Ace scowled downwards, refusing to meet anyone's eye. He knew the story; he knew how much he owed his mother. She'd saved his life and he wasn't going to die here if it could possibly be helped.

"And when the birth came, her strength all but spent, she left this world as you entered it. One year and three months from the father's death a child was born bearing the most accursed blood to be found in this world," Sengoku went on, "that child is you. Do not claim you are not aware that your father is none other than Gol D. Roger!"

* * *

In the sudden silence a wickedly amused female voice spoke up, echoing over the Den Den Mushi frequency.

"Jeez, you old bastard; what's with you Marines and your obsession with picking on the family baby?"

There was a sudden commotion on the Plaza as all attention was suddenly focused on the massively tall woman in a red captain's coat with messy bottle green hair tied back from her face and a broad grin filling the lower half of her face as a tiny Den Den Mushi perched on her shoulder, broadcasting her words.

"I mean, Roger was a pirate for decades and you think little Ace is his only son? Get real people!" she went on as the Marines closest to her roiled back like ants. "I mean, he was a pirate! Wine, women and song, you know the drill!" she tilted her head back so the visual Den Den Mushi could get a good look at her fierce features. "Roger had half a dozen kids in his lifetime and you know what Sengoku, as the eldest of the brood I've got a bone to pick with you for victimizing our baby brother. Never let it be said that Gol D. Spitfire doesn't look after her family!" She drew her sword, haki blasting off her in waves.

There was instant and utter pandemonium. The Marines around Spitfire scattered as her blade came down, the giants tried to get closer and Sengoku shouted orders that were lost as panic shook the area and a dozen more pirates in bottle green coats cut into the square from amongst the houses, maiming Marines and sowing confusion as they went. Spitfire laid into her attackers with cheerful vigour; laughing like a maniac as grown men who barely came up to her waist tried to cut her down and failed miserably.

Gol D. Roger's eldest had been wrangling Sea Kings from the age of seventeen and had over twenty years' experience of battle. She was stronger, more imaginative and more fearless than the soldiers trying desperately to take her down and it showed. Bodies didn't just fall; they flew. Spitfire glanced up at the execution stand: the sight of Sengoku's frustration and well-hidden fear was a delight, but more so was the silly grin on her baby brother's face.

Then the fleet of pirate ships appeared just outside the bay and Spitfire set about fighting in earnest. Reinforcements were coming!

* * *

Ace stared as first his big sister raised hell and sowed chaos, then a fleet of Pops' allies appeared around the island and finally the Moby Dick itself and three of the fleet surfaced in the middle of the bay, Whitebeard himself standing on the Whale figurehead. He couldn't help the manic giggle that bubbled in his throat as next to him Sengoku tried not to panic.

"You know, I had myself disinherited," he said conversationally, "so that nobody would ever be able to say that my father was anyone other than Whitebeard. It seemed fair really when I was the only person left to carry on my mother's name and Roger had all those other kids."

Sengoku turned on him. "You knew?!"

Ace snorted. "They hunted me down as soon as I got past Reverse Mountain. Don't ever believe Spitfire is all there is; I've got nieces and nephews older than I am and relatives in Paradise and the New World. Killing me won't end the Pirate King's legacy: this execution is just bringing everyone willing to openly fight the Marines out of the woodwork." He chuckled. "Spitfire's old enough to be my mother, you know and she isn't exactly inconspicuous. Makes me wonder how you missed her."

Satisfied that he had done his part in spreading panic and paranoia, Ace settled down to watch as Whitebeard fired his first salvo at the island, shaking the seas and the skies with his Devil Fruit Ability. He felt kinda bad about Pops coming to rescue him when it was his own fault for running off after Blackbeard in the first place, but Fox' letter stood out in his mind warning him that his family weren't about to let him die, no matter how much of an idiot he was.

Then the seas rumbled and tidal waves rose high above the island, called up by Pops' Devil Fruit Power.

* * *

Spitfire kicks over a hornet's nest and Whitebeard arrives.


	75. Whirlwind

**Whirlwind **

As the battleship they had got this far on was dislodged from the ice and fell down into the bay, Luffy tore the piece of paper he had been given clean in half. The battle below was raging all over the place, ships clashing, a Sea King powering through the ice ahead of a trio of pirate vessels and a massive giant lying slumped over the middle of the bay. He had heard the alert announcing that Ace was going to be executed early, which meant he needed to get his brother safely away quickly. The favour Fox had given him was his best bet.

He looked up as Jinbe fished him out of the water. "Ace!" He bellowed happily. "I finally found you!" As Luffy stood with his current allies, a white ball of light bloomed in front of him and expanded into a kneeling figure with one hand flat on the ground and a fist held over its heart. Luffy's heart sped up as he recognised the mask.

"Ghost-guy?"

The rubberman was only vaguely aware of spreading panic as pirates and Marines alike noticed who, exactly, was kneeling in front of Straw-Hat Luffy. Luffy himself was trying to think quickly: this had to be Fox' favour. If so, it was a really _big_ favour and he owed her _masses_. But first he had to give orders.

"Erm, Mr Phantom?" The white-garbed assassin rose smoothly to his feet and stepped sideways, turning to take in the panorama before facing Luffy once more. The rubberman cleared his throat. "Please don't kill any pirates," he said quickly, "and don't let anybody kill Ace!"

The masked assassin bowed and zipped away across the ice, headed toward the execution stand and leaving a trail of mutilated and screaming Marines in his wake.

"You didn't mention you had the bloody Phantom Fox on call!" Buggy screeched.

"It makes a person vonder vhy you raided Impel Down at all," Ivankov agreed. "Ze Phantom Fox is a legend!"

"How did you find him?" Crocodile asked.

Luffy shrugged. "It's a favour; he's only here for two hours," he said impatiently. "Now let's get going!" He had no idea that quite a lot of people had heard him and were wondering what kind of monster Monkey D. Luffy was to get a favour from the World's Greatest Assassin.

* * *

When wearing the mask Fox saw the world filtered through her Devil Fruit Ability and through haki. She also tapped heavily into the Logia aspects of the power at her disposal, making her very hard to hit but even harder to avoid. Her arrival on the battlefield in this guise had abruptly changed the focus of the fight: she, not Whitebeard, was now the primary target. The Phantom was the greater threat to the world order, having proved it could –and would– slaughter the nobility without hesitation.

The Phantom Fox danced through the chaos, leapt up onto the embankment using Little Oars Jr. as a step and landed lightly on the execution stand. Before Sengoku could react to the abrupt arrival however the assassin kicked him in the gut, transferring the momentum and channelling the Colour of Armament into a single well-placed boot. The Fleet Admiral went flying; Vice-Admiral Garp tried to retaliate but he had not been expecting to fight and the Phantom was in its element. Gloved fingers found and crushed a pressure point; Garp staggered and was launched away by another well-aimed boot. Ace turned and was firmly pushed back to the floor as a glittering foot tried to take the assassin's head off. The Phantom slipped sideways just far enough for the kick to miss its head and drew Zanchou, carving through muscle and scraping bone as the blade came down on the Admiral's leg. Kizaru gasped, abruptly robbed of his Devil Fruit Power by the Kairoseki sword and of his mobility by the wound. A flick of the wrist cleaned the blade before it came down again; the Admiral dodged, rolling off the execution platform and leaving a bloody smear behind.

The Phantom didn't have time to gloat over surprising an Admiral even if it had been the sort to indulge in that kind of thing: Aokiji had seen his colleague fall and was far more cautious and considerably more aggressive in his attack. The assassin ducked, dodged, turned and rammed a thin Kairoseki needle through the Ice Logia's elbow joint before counterattacking with Zanchou, the blade roaring like a great wave as it whizzed through the air and nearly decapitated Aokiji as the Admiral retreated, trying to pry the needle out of his arm. A quick kick put the handicapped Devil Fruit User off-balance but Aokiji threw himself backwards off the Execution Stand rather than try and parry the sword heading towards his centre of balance. As he fell he grasped the needle and pulled it out, regaining his powers if not dealing with the damage caused by the unexpected weapons brought against him. Aokiji attacked again, this time with an ice blade that was sliced clean through by Zanchou in spite of the Busoshoku Haki reinforcement; the Kairoseki blade's own Will was to cut and compounded with the Phantom's own ferocious resolve it took a truly exceptional mind to counter the combination. Kuzan was too disillusioned by his experiences to match the seamless force of Will he was facing and nearly lost an arm as he dodged again, the Phantom's sword shearing off his right epaulette and a layer of skin.

* * *

Aokiji's only advantage was that his opponent was focused on defending the fallen and still chained Portgas D. Ace rather than on obliterating his foes. It was a pitifully slim advantage when the Phantom had already demonstrated superior Busoshoku and Kenbunshoku Haki on top of a considerable advantage in both speed and agility and strength almost equal to Aokiji's own. Added to the incredible skill demonstrated in weaponry and stunning professionalism, the Phantom was by far the most dangerous enemy of the Marines present on the battlefield even when Whitebeard and the self-proclaimed Gol. D. Spitfire were considered.

The primary problem was that with the assassin occupying the Execution Stand the execution could not go ahead, early or otherwise. Kizaru was momentarily out of commission, Garp couldn't move his right arm at all and Sengoku was trying to coordinate their forces in the face of considerable difficulty. Gol D. Spitfire was truly a master of psychological warfare to have struck when and how she did; even now she was fighting Admiral Akainu and matching him blow for blow in-between striking down any other Marine that entered her range. The Pirate King's daughter favoured an acrobatic style that broke heads and used her enemies as impromptu projectiles and seemed wholly inappropriate for one so large, yet worked frighteningly well. Akainu's lava attacks were batted away or dodged, the massive woman laughing all the while. Her green-coated associates were busily maiming and moving on, spreading through the Marines like shrapnel bombs and leaving screams in their wake. It was a brutal and highly effective tactic against massed forces and showed far more professionalism than most pirates ever contemplated. Another sign that this Spitfire woman was a force to be feared.

Then the Pacifistas stepped into view; perhaps now the forces of Justice would regain the initiative.

* * *

As the Kuma look-alikes walked out onto the ice and started attacking the pirate ships Spitfire used her broad blade like a bat, launching Akainu away from her. Then she dashed over to the edge of the bay, stuck bloody fingers in her mouth and whistled piercingly.

"Up and at 'em, my lovelies!" She roared over the sounds of battle. "Take out the big guys with the targets on their shirts!"

There was a pause, then with a creaking and a shattering like a thousand cannonballs the ice ruptured in three places and three massive heads emerged, throwing good-sized icebergs around like chaff. Ripper and Snapper looked down crocodilian muzzles at their prey as a laser bounced off Snapper's scales; Trudi shook off the ice like loose feathers, opened her beak and trilled like a bass bell before lunging forwards, tiny wing-like fins steering her over the rough surface like a pinball and leaving a trail of smoking acid in her wake.

Laughing happily, Spitfire turned her attention to one of the giants. Her babies would be just fine defending the rear. Whitebeard obviously agreed, as he ordered his forces to focus on attacking towards the Stand where Fox was defending Ace from all comers in all her deadly masked glory. Spitfire cut her enemies' feet from under him and lopped off his head on the backstroke, carving forwards through the Marines, half of whom were desperately trying to stay away from her. She battled onwards, occasionally knocking out convicts who couldn't let go of a grudge in between throwing Marines every which way.

She was elbow deep in intestine when Whitebeard was stabbed by one of his sons –raising Sea Kings completely destroys any and all squeamishness a person might have– and didn't pay much attention until the aging pirate shattered the ice keeping the ships close, dumping Trudi into the water and making Ripper and Snapper bellow at the pain.

"Oi!" she roared furiously up at the white-moustachioed man, waving her bloody cutlass in one hand and a fistful of guts in the other. "Mind out for _my_ babies when you do that! They've been breaking up the ice and taking out the robots that were attacking your fleet so you could be a bit more careful!"

Whitebeard chuckled. "I apologise, Spitfire! I did not intend to harm your pets."

"You'd better not have!" she shouted back, in no way mollified. "You don't see me cutting down your kids when they get under foot, do you?!" She ignored the whimpering caused by the Haoshoku haki she was radiating in her anger; she _hated_ it when people targeted her loved ones, animal or otherwise. "Do you want me to _start_?!"

"Easy, Spitfire," came the voice of reason from beside her as a hand caught her elbow and orange curls entered her vision. Tempest smiled gently, shaking a trio of bodies off the end of her bisento. "Everyone makes mistakes; we're all fighting towards the same goal, yes?"

Spitfire growled, shaking off the restraining hand, but did not attack Whitebeard or his crew of 'kids'. Tempest was right; they were here to rescue Ace. With that in mind she turned and waded back into the fray, taking her temper out on the hapless Marines and the island's infrastructure. What did they need all those pretentious towers for anyway?

Then down by the ice steel walls rose up out of the sea, blocking the pirates off from the island and Akainu started throwing lava balls at the Moby Dick. Spitfire didn't like the crotchety old man much, but that didn't mean she was just going to stand by and let them burn his boat.

"Jaws! Up and at em!"

For a moment nothing happened, then from beneath the bay a new head surfaced, throwing half-melted rock and ice floes every which way. The immense head of Jaws, part Gulper Eel, part porcupine, hovered over the bay, almost large enough to swallow the island whole.

Spitfire pointed at the Moby Dick, which was starting to burn. "Catch and keep!" she ordered briskly. Jaws obeyed, swallowing the ship whole and vanishing back under the waves in a rush that set all the pirates on the ice tumbling. Spitfire turned towards Whitebeard.

"I'll give it back later, you old bastard! Don't worry about leaving: I'll give you a lift when the time comes!"

Whitebeard laughed. "Gurararara! I'll hold you to that!"

* * *

Battle rages on.


	76. Fire

**Fire**

When donning the mask Fox lost all sense of time: there was the mission and nothing mattered but the mission until the mission was complete. She didn't get tired, so time was meaningless. The Phantom had evicted Sengoku from the execution stand twice more already, stuck more Kairoseki needles in both Aokiji and Akainu and dismembered at least two dozen Vice-Admirals and other miscellaneous underlings who had tried to assist their superiors. Garp had been conspicuously absent, probably because he cared about Ace and it was very obvious the assassin was protecting him. However it was getting difficult to do so and the Phantom was considering cutting her charge loose. On the one hand, he'd be harder to protect while running around. On the other she wouldn't have to focus so hard on keeping him safe as he was a Logia user and most attacks would go through him.

Decisions, decisions. The Phantom barely paid any attention to the steel walls blocking off the bay; they didn't matter. The mission was to protect Ace and Ace was being protected.

Then Luffy landed at the base of the stand in front of the three admirals –Kizaru was there but not really joining in much after losing half his leg muscle– holding tightly to a wooden spar that had been thrown over the barriers. The Phantom did not join in the battle against the admirals, simply defending the stand and cutting down everyone who got too close. The small space at the top of the stand belonged to the assassin now and the blood and body parts that rained down after every attempted assault proved that possession was indeed nine-tenths of the law.

As the tides of battle shifted and the Whitebeard Pirates made it up onto the island the highest ranking Marines shifted from trying to take back Ace and the execution stand to intercepting any pirates trying to join the assassin at the top. The Phantom did not intervene so long as they stayed out of sword range; Garp punched Marco the Phoenix in the face mere yards from where the masked killer was poised over the chained pirate without the assassin moving a muscle.

The Phantom paid no mind to the tears of joy being shed by the object of the mission, waiting patiently for new orders or a change in circumstances. Deep inside, well buried by artificial calm and an iron sense of duty, Fox noticed that Luffy was dipping deep in her reserves again. Not that it made a difference right now; she could have sustained every last pirate fighting while in full Logia form and done so for days at a time. Being a Logia meant limitless access to your element and her element was 'Life'. The Phantom Fox could outlast every last Marine being brought to bear; time meant nothing.

So the assassin waited on as Whitebeard charged and his Division Commanders started to run into difficulties.

* * *

Ace stared down at the scene unfolding below, having by now got over the shock of the white watchdog Luffy had somehow set guarding him. Pops was wounded and bleeding and had just coughed up blood, his illness catching up with him. Fire Fist was no longer kneeling on the edge of the stand but sprawled on his stomach under the feet of the assassin protecting him but didn't care for the indignity of it right now. He was too worried about Whitebeard, who had just sent another dozen men flying.

"I am Whitebeard!" the old man roared. "My death: its significance is not lost to me and I am well aware of just what that would entail. That is why, the very reason why I cannot die just yet. Not until I can secure the future of my sons with these very hands! Isn't that right Ace?"

Ace stared, even as another wave of determined Marine Commodores mounted the stand and were smoothly dismembered by a blade that sang like the rushing of ocean waves. He ignored the blood that drenched him and flying body parts bouncing off his back to fall at the edge of his line of sight; Luffy was on his feet again.

"Ace! I'm coming now!"

"Men!" Whitebeard roared as Luffy dashed forwards. "Use all you've got to back up Straw-Hat!" Some of the green-coated fighters who had to be Spitfire's crew –not that she even had a ship but 'minions' didn't fit– joined in the rush, some of them having discarded their boots to reveal fins or webbed feet. Now that the ice was mostly gone there were water blasts flying as well, driving the Marines into buildings and bringing down masonry. Ivankov ran beside Luffy and Ace' fellow Division Commanders backed his little brother up then Inazuma of the Revolutionary Army emerged from Ivankov's hair and cut a road to the execution stand.

Luffy dashed up the oddly shaped masonry towards Ace and his guard dog, who appeared to be more interested in the Admirals down below than the fast-approaching pirate.

"I'm here! Ace!" Luffy bellowed.

"Go Straw-Hat! Free Ace!" came up the chant from down below. But then Gramps landed on the road, blocking the path a good distance below the Phantom's reach.

"Since long before you were born I've been fighting with pirates!" Garp roared, the bridge cracking beneath his feet. "If you want to get through here you'll have to do so after killing me, Straw-Hat Luffy! That's the path you two have chosen!"

Ace winced; Gramps really was Luffy's grandfather by blood and that was an impossible choice for his little brother. Family was family.

"I can't do it Gramps!" Luffy shouted, not slowing. "Please move!"

"If you can't do it that simply means Ace will die!" Garp shouted back. Ace tensed as a bloody boot entered his field of vision, placed deliberately above his right shoulder. The blood flowed down the leather onto the stand, revealing pristine white underneath as Garp charged Luffy with a fist out and Ace' little brother crouched, smoke rising from his body again.

"Uwaaa!" Luffy screamed, his fist hitting Garp in the face and sending him flying as he dashed up the crumbling bridge. He landed on the slick execution stand and almost stumbled, but righted himself quickly.

"I have the key!" he gasped. "Hold on-" A push from the assassin dropped Luffy onto Ace' back as Fleet Admiral Sengoku landed on the execution stand, massive and golden and very angry. The Phantom Fox stood poised between the leader of the Marine forces and the two pirates, sword sheathed in his sash and garments as white and clean as though they'd never been bloodied.

A flash of light caught Ace' eye as Luffy fumbled the key into the lock, ignoring the stand-off occurring scant feet away.

"Ah! The key! The key's been ruined!" Luffy squawked. The assassin turned, leapt back a step and grabbed Luffy by the shirt, turning him to face the Fleet Admiral's attack. Ace was kicked sideways on his face once more as a gloved hand dropped to the slick boards by his ear and a wicked hum like a metal tide danced over his back.

_Shwuuum._

The cuffs fell apart as the execution stand crumpled; Ace instinctively activated his powers and reached for his little brother, who had somehow blocked a punch from Sengoku the Budda by turning into a balloon.

"You've always been this way Luffy!" Ace growled as he caught his brother by the back of the shirt, "never listening to a word of what I say and always overdoing it!" He used his Mera Mera no Mi ability to cushion their fall, floating on the heat of conjured flames. Beside him the white-clad, fox-masked assassin fell too, his short cloak buoying him up until he landed lightly at Ace' back and to Luffy's right on the stone paving of the Plaza.

"Can you fight Luffy?" Ace asked.

"Of course!" Luffy protested. "Ghost-guy, watch our backs!"

The assassin sharply nodded once, hand floating over the hilt of his sword as he watched the gathering Marines. The fight quickly started up again, Luffy's assassin associate coordinating with them both perfectly as he cut down Marines in between Ace setting them on fire and Luffy sending them flying.

* * *

Whitebeard's voice echoed over the battlefield, catching Spitfire's attention.

"We've done what we came for; now there's no more reason for us to be here! What I'm about to tell you is my final captain's order: listen carefully, Whitebeard pirates!"

Spitfire couldn't pick words out of the cacophony that followed, but she could tell the old geezer's crew wasn't happy. She waded through the melee towards the man, cutlass swinging from one hand and the other snatching up people and throwing them around.

"This is where you and I split up!" Whitebeard bellowed. "Every single one of you! Stay alive at all costs! Return to the New World in one piece!"

A sentiment Spitfire could get behind; she whistled for her pets, Runt in particular who had to circle the island to get here. "Time to go boys and girls!" she called out to her people, who all responded at once, including the two wearing badly damaged Marine uniforms.

"I'm a remnant of my era!" Whitebeard continued. "There ain't no ship that's going to carry me out to the new one! Go on! All of you bastards!" The massive fortress overlooking the harbour trembled and shattered. Spitfire grinned.

"To the sea, kiddies! Last one's a rotten egg!"

* * *

As Whitebeard made his announcement Ghost-guy grabbed Ace firmly by the shoulder and steered him down towards the sea, beckoning to Luffy as he did so. Luffy got the hint, hurrying after them amongst the mayhem and panic. As they passed Whitebeard his big brother pulled away from the assassin and set up a massive flare, kneeling. The old man turned.

"No need to speak," Whitebeard said. "Just answer me one question Ace: am I a good father?"

"Of course!" Ace choked.

The old man chuckled. Ghost-guy stepped forward again and pulled Ace to his feet, headed for the ships.

"Running away the moment you grabbed Ace, what a bunch of cowards, the whitebeard pirates," came an unfamiliar voice from behind them. "The captain as well; it can't be helped. Whitebeard is after all just a failure from the previous era!"

Ace stopped, shaking off Ghost-guy's hand and turning around. Luffy stopped too.

"Failure?" Ace repeated softly. Luffy noticed that the assassin he'd been lent seemed to want to interrupt, but didn't. Was it because he'd only ordered him to stop anyone from killing Ace, then to watch their backs? Should he ask him to drag Ace along with them and escape? He knew this Phantom-guy could teleport; he'd seen it on Alabasta.

"Take back what you just said!" Ace hissed at the Admiral with lava sliding down the side of his face. The Admiral did not but went on speaking, riling Ace up further and insulting the Whitebeard Pirates with every other sentence as things descended into a shouting match and Ace threw a punch.

The clash threw up a fountain of lava and Ace screamed in pain. Luffy staggered, his strength running out again. Ghost-guy shoved him at Jinbe then hurried back towards Ace, then everything happened at once:

Luffy dropped the Vivre card Ace had given him and bent over to pick it up.

The admiral lunged at Luffy, lava fist raised.

Ace screamed his name.

Luffy looked up to see the admiral's fist sticking out of his big brother's chest and on the stones by his knee, the vivre card crumbled.

Then speed somehow returned to normal, a white blur striking the admiral in the face and launching him backwards into the air. A furious shriek echoed and a massive woman with green hair wielding a wide sword charged after the admiral, sea water dancing around her bloody fist. Luffy stared in horror as the Phantom wrapped his arms around his big brother, lifting him into a bridal carry so that his head rested on the assassin's shoulder, uncaring that his cloak had caught fire.

"I'm sorry, Luffy," Ace coughed up blood all over Ghost-guy as Luffy staggered closer, staring in horror at the hole that when right through his brother.

"Ace we've gotta hurry and treat your-" the rubberman begged.

"I'm sorry I couldn't let you save me properly," Ace went on, coughing up more blood as more red streamed from his abdomen. "Forgive me!"

"Somebody save Ace!" Luffy begged frantically as the Phantom's arms tightened around his big brother, supporting him.

"It's no good," Ace panted. "I can tell when my own end has come! He's burned up my insides!" he gasped. "I'm not coming back from this, so… Luffy-"

"What are you talking about Ace?" Luffy begged. "Ace… are you going to die? You are not going to die! No! You promised!"

"I don't want to… Luffy," Ace chuckled, the sound having a horrible sucking undertone. "But-" he trembled, gasping for breath and slumping forwards.

"Ace!" Luffy screamed, suddenly seeing the almost destroyed Vivre card and turning on the assassin, the assassin who knew Fox. "Ghost-guy! Don't let my brother die no matter what!"

Ace gasped, then the air rattled in his chest in a terribly final way and his eyes closed. The assassin vanished in a ball of white light just as the paper on the ground fell apart to nothing. Luffy choked, staring in horror at where it had been.

"Aaaaaace!"

* * *

And that's the end of the battle for both Fox and Luffy.


	77. Wrath

**Wrath**

Spitfire raged, sword and seawater lashing through the air as she attacked the bastard admiral who had tried to murder her baby brother. The tall mermaid had inherited the full measure of her father's temper and it showed: blood fell around her like rain as she sliced through anyone who got close rather than simply batting them away.

"You dare to strike down my brother!" she roared, batting a lava ball into a knot of Marines, "I'll cut you down to size, you bastard!" She abruptly stuck her cutlass through her belt and pulled her hands together. "Ultramarine!" The massive torrent summoned flattened Akainu and everyone unfortunate enough to be near or behind him, temporarily flooding the Plaza in four feet of seawater. Spitfire didn't wait for the foul man to recover, chasing after him at high speed and drawing a knife.

Spitfire had never really bothered with the short –two foot– blade Fox had given her as a gift one year; she'd never had much need for Kairoseki. Now however, now she had a use for it. As the admiral levered himself out of a hole Spitfire brought the knife down on his left hand with vicious accuracy. She grinned with vindictive glee as the ends of half his fingers were cut away and blood flew.

"Nobody hurts my family and gets away with it! That's _my_ justice, you stinking dog!" Spitfire kicked the severed fingers away into the retreating water and brought a haki-reinforced fist down on the Admiral's head for good measure. Then she hopped a good distance back to avoid being disembowelled by another giant.

The giant didn't last long in the face of her blinding fury and in a short lull she glanced around, making sure her people were safely away. Then the fortress above them crumpled further. Spitfire spun and dashed towards Whitebeard, who had half his head missing and had just curb-stomped Akainu. She grinned; the old geezer was cool. Cutting the Plaza in two however was less cool.

"Oi! Old Man!" she shouted, blasting forwards to stand beside him. "That was dirty!"

"Whitebeard glanced across at her. "Spitfire? I didn't see you there."

"Then you must be going blind; I'm not that short," Spitfire snarked back, taking in the size of the gap and the Marines arrayed against them. "Never mind; Runt won't have a problem." She cooed under her breath, the low frequency spreading out and calling her favourite pet to her. "In the mean time, I gotta request before you die," she added quietly.

Whitebeard eyed her sideways. "Oh?"

"Yeah. You see the curly ginger with the bisento loading people onto the seahorse-turtle Sea King?" Spitfire murmured. The white-moustachioed man who matched her height turned, looking over his shoulder.

"Yes?"

"That's Tempest; your firstborn," Spitfire said bluntly. "I want to know if she and the others have your permission to carry your name into the new era." She swung her cutlass at the Marine Captains who tried to take advantage of the old pirate's momentary shock. "Oi! An answer would be nice!"

"Others?" Whitebeard asked, batting a dozen men away as he recovered his mental balance.

"Five on Fishman," Spitfire said cryptically, "Youngest is ten and cute as a button. Us pirate-born look out for each-other."

"And this was never mentioned before because," Whitebeard growled.

Spitfire laughed. "We're the children on the sea, old man! Every last one of us! Blood only matters to us if our would-be father acknowledges us! But if they aren't interested, if they don't think to ask, we take care of ourselves. Always." She called up another blast of water, clearing a space for a little more privacy. "I'm only asking 'cause you care about your kids so I though you wouldn't mind a few more; it _really_ isn't done to tell a guy if he doesn't show an interest first." She winced slightly at the massive taboo she was committing.

Whitebeard chuckled. "Gurarara! I would be honoured! Please keep an eye on my children as well, now I won't be able to."

"Like I'd abandon Tempest!" Spitfire snorted. "She's my right hand; keeps everyone in order and out of trouble for me." She grinned. "A better nakama no pirate could hope for."

There was a deep, bass rumble behind her and a blast of air like a geyser as the Marines suddenly panicked a bit more and a shadow fell over them both. Runt tilted his head so that Spitfire could swing herself up onto his nose. "Not coming then?" She called.

"No!" Whitebeard shouted back. "Watch over my sons for me!"

"Say hi to dad when you see him!" Spitfire called back, rising high above the fortress on the end of Runt's nose as the immense Sea King turned his head to deposit her on the top of the sea wall. "Oi! Marco!" she shouted down to Whitebeard's First Division Commander. "Snouty over there can take a hell of a lot more passengers than he's got," she waved at the seahorse-turtle Sea King who was wrapping people in bubbles and hiding them under his shell, "and he's quicker than the ships! Get people moving!"

"Why didn't you bring Pops back?!" the pirate shouted back at her.

"He didn't want to come!" she bellowed. "He's dying, you twit! Let him go out like he wants to! Like _my_ old man did!"

Marco made a face like he'd bitten something sour, but directed more of his crew towards the Sea King. Spitfire then looked around for Luffy. The Straw-Hat kid was Ace' little brother, so as big sister she had to look out for him on her baby brother's behalf.

* * *

Fox landed in Shanks' cabin and immediately discarded the mask, kicking it under the bed and sliding her sword after it. Then she ripped off the smouldering cape, placed Ace on top of it and pulled her shirt off over her head. The knife-sheathes followed it onto the floor, as did her gloves. Then she knelt over the cooling body of her best friend and placed glowing hands over his ruined torso.

Ace wasn't in right now; she'd felt him fading as she held him in her arms and had pulled him into herself before he could get away. Even now he was tethered at the edge of her soul with Zoro watching over him. Being pregnant had a great many disadvantages, but a real advantage was that her body was currently primed to support and nurture other living things.

Fox did not think about the consequences. She did not think about how she and Zoro would have to adapt to adding a third person to their mental tangle. Her captain had ordered her to save Ace no matter what and Fox would do it. Carefully compartmentalising so that her unborn child would not get caught in the challenge ahead of her, Fox set about cleaning out Ace' torso so that there would be no dead, cooked organs to impede her nakama's recovery. As bubbling ooze seeped out of the hole in Ace' chest and spread across the floor Fox immersed herself in cataloguing the damage.

_Spinal cord severed and partially gone, liver and pancreas terminally fried and mostly gone, kidneys fried, heart partially fried, lungs damaged, large and small intestine ruined, all the muscles between the shoulder and the hip damaged in one way or another, several vertebrae vaporised and the lower ribs are charred to uselessness, not to mention the massive amounts of damage to the nervous system, circulatory system and lymphatic system. This is going to be a very long job._

Fox never even considered failure. She had her orders and that was that. Pausing only to scribble a note using some of the blood soaking her hands and stick it into a message case she bent back over her patient and set about rebuilding him, her focus divided between healing the damage, ensuring the still-living areas didn't die while she was busy and ensuring the soul didn't come unstuck. Ace was having an out-of-body experience right now, but he would be going back as soon as there was a working body to go back to.

* * *

Zoro perched on a reef in the ocean that wasn't really ocean at all but a part of his lover's inner world, watching the bubble containing Portgas D. Ace. He'd been napping ever since Fox started preparing herself for the fight and had been watching her from the moment she landed at Luffy's feet. Feeling her leap into battle had been beautiful, seeing her become one with her sword and move with such precision and power. Zoro had known Fox was stronger than he was, but damn if he didn't have a long way to go if he wanted to match her. Strength was easy; skill, accuracy, speed, stamina and pinpoint judgement were what he really needed and they were so much harder to gain.

He'd been watching when Ace fell to the admiral with the lava Logia and had known instantly what Fox was going to do when Luffy ordered her to save Ace. He never considered stopping her; Luffy was the captain for a reason and though this was going to mess up their lives even further, the swordsman refused to fail his captain in any way. So he sank deeper into his lover's mind and when Luffy's brother's soul appeared, light and fire encased in a bubble of living power, Zoro carefully herded it to the edge where his own mind met Fox' and set up a watch on it.

This particular reef was special because it had a paw-shaped pool in the middle of it and was full of fresh water rather than salt water; it was the point where Zoro could get in and out of his lover's mind regardless of the distance separating them. Zoro knew perfectly well it didn't exist in conventional terms, but it was a nice place so he ignored the impossibility of it. Currently Ace was floating in his bubble above the pool like a genie in a bottle, but Zoro knew in his bones that when the other man woke up the bubble would pop and Ace would be loose in both their minds. That was why he was on guard: He wanted Ace to know where he was and the risks associated with running about willy-nilly.

The swordsman had worked out that most of the reason he was so uncoordinated was that he'd spent so much time thinking Fox' mind was his own, which had confused her as well. Ace might not be terribly coherent when he came to, but Zoro intended to play babysitter while Fox was busy. He had an ulterior motive, of course: attached somewhere in here was his unborn child and that was one thing Zoro did not want Ace to go anywhere near.

Resettling himself on the reef, the green-haired asura kept his eyes on the fiery soul of his captain's brother; hopefully this would not take as much of a toll on Fox as healing him had done.

* * *

So, four chapters of action yesterday! Things are winding down a bit now, but Ace isn't dead yet. Well, he's mostly dead actually, but he'll recover.


	78. Undertow

**Undertow **

Tempest, Striped Eel Catfish mermaid and eldest biological daughter of the Yonko Whitebeard who had just been murdered by a former member of his crew, was a very kind and even-tempered woman. She had known Gol D. Spitfire all her life and the two were best friends, just as their mothers had been. However despite being generally a forgiving and motherly woman she was ruthlessly protective of the people in her care, regardless of whether they were lifelong friends or casual allies. People who got caught up and inspired by Spitfire's natural charisma and cheerful fearlessness were frequently persuaded to stay in her vicinity by Tempest's acceptance and caring nature, especially as they were tempered by even-handed discipline and an amazing ability to ferret out the truth.

It was to her enemies' misfortune that Tempest had been blessed with a cool head and the ability to make sensible, rational decisions even when deeply upset. So it was that when her father was killed she simply stayed at her post loading pirates and allies onto Snouty, Spitfire's personnel transport Sea King, until she noticed Admiral Aokiji descending to the waterfront. Perceiving at once the man's intentions, Tempest ordered Snouty to dive, redirected the people headed her way to the other ships anchored nearby and hefted her bisento thoughtfully as in the bay the waves froze once more.

Part of what frightened this particular mermaid's opponents was that she remained calm, rational and pleasant even when she was hacking through your forces like so much wheat; she had no killing intent to speak of and came across as comfortably motherly even when she was knee-deep in your allies' blood and cutting your head off. So it was then that Aokiji almost failed to notice he was being attacked when she lightly dropped off the waterfront behind him, swinging her massive weapon down to chop him in half.

"Sorry Jimbe," the admiral was saying as Tempest fell towards him, his attention on Pearl's second cousin who was trying to get a catatonic Luffy away from Admiral Akainu. However Aokiji had not gained his rank by being careless and managed to sense the weapon swinging down towards his skull in time to dodge a blow that cleaved the ice beneath his feet like butter, the shockwave generated travelling deep and carrying forwards over forty feet.

Despite being a polearm user, Tempest was a student of the Way of Destruction that was more common to powerful swordsmen. Raising the long weapon in both hands she swung again, eyes not straying from the Ice Logia even as Akainu caught up with Jinbe.

"Greetings, Aokiji-san," she said politely as she aimed a flying slash at his head, trimming his hair and cutting a deep gouge in the ice behind him. "It is a pleasure to meet a man Lisska-chan speaks so well of. I trust you have been enjoying the tea she found? I know she went to a lot of trouble to obtain it for you."

"It is very good," the admiral admitted, his voice slightly strained as he ducked another highly accurate shockwave attack. "I trust she is well?"

"Very well despite the inconvenience that recent events on Sabaody caused for her," Tempest responded, ducking under a barrage of ice and swinging her bisento like a bat to swat Aokiji out of the air. "I believe you are aware of the incident involving the Human Auction House?" she added as he pulled himself upright, aiming a further cutting blow at the ice between them.

"It was mentioned to me," Aokiji admitted as the ice around him cracked and shifted. Tempest took the opportunity to quietly order Snouty and the nearby Snapper to batter the ice around the stranded ships so the pirates could escape, then aimed another blow at where her Kenbunshoku Haki indicated the admiral was going to move to.

"You are highly skilled," Aokiji complemented her as the ice beneath her booted fins started to vibrate under in precisely timed blows. "I am surprised not to have heard of you before."

"The Marine forces are more concerned with policing the surface of the seas than what occurs beneath them," Tempest said calmly, "and rarely bother with what occurs in the Calm Belts. We have up until now largely abided by the World Government's laws, so our obscurity is unsurprising. Had Ace not been sentenced to death, we would likely be law-abiding still."

"What unfortunate circumstances these are that pit us against each-other," the admiral lamented, attacking again.

"Indeed; there are so few people in positions of power that Lisska speaks highly of," Tempest agreed as out beyond the raised steel walls a submarine surfaced. Tempest had known it was there, as she'd overheard Spitfire telling Runt not to eat it. Across the bay ice cracked and shattered, freeing several ships, and a Marine vessel collapsed under the weight of Trudi, who had taken it upon herself to reduce the chances of pursuit.

Tempest then lost sight of her reluctant opponent as the whole island rocked and returned to help evacuate pirates onto Snouty, who had battered a large enough hole in the ice to get his head through and was dutifully taking more people on board. The fourteen-foot mermaid patted him appreciatively on the side of the jaw and set about getting the new arrivals to line up neatly to reduce the time it took for Snouty to bubble them and fishing the occasional unfortunate out of the sea.

She would have time to grieve later, when everyone was safely away.

* * *

As Red-Hair Shanks arrived on the battlefield Dracule Mihawk turned away from the fight, heading back to where he'd left his raft on the far side on the island.

"Hawkeye! Where are you going?" a Marine captain called after him. The swordsman turned.

"I consented to warring against Whitebeard," he said coolly, "but Red-Hair is outside the scope of our agreement." It was bad enough that his suspicions regarding how his daughter had escaped slavery had been confirmed today; seeing the infamous Phantom Fox in action had filled him both with pride and great pain. She had grown into a magnificent swordswoman despite her open preference for knives and deplorable lack of ambition, but her skills were largely to be credited to a man he had never met and could not find. Nonetheless, despite Lisska's remarkable skill in muting her presence and disguising her appearance, Mihawk had recognised her. He was however certain he was the only one who had; his daughter's incredible affinity for Iaido was not something most people were aware of, nor did they know he had taught her as much as he could about it as a child when he witnessed for himself her talent.

Mihawk had not expected to see his daughter today, but was grateful she had kept herself clear of the melee. He would not have been able to stand aside had she drawn the attention of his fellow Shichibukai, particularly Donflamingo. She had also left as soon as Fire-Fist had suffered a fatal blow, not that any blow could be guaranteed to be fatal where his daughter's Ability was concerned. He would likely see Portgas D. Ace again.

In the meantime however he trusted her to stay well out of sight and out of trouble until things died down again. She was very good at hiding and sufficiently pragmatic to do so religiously at this point. If only she showed similar good judgement when it came to selecting her lovers…

Mihawk shook his head as he made his way between the ruined and partly-flooded buildings towards his raft. Lisska had proved herself to truly be her mother's daughter and gotten pregnant by accident. Her choice of partner irritated him, largely because he had had high hopes of the young Santoryuu user and was now conflicted. He couldn't kill the boy without severely harming her and it irked him to have his options limited; hopefully the young man would prove himself worthy enough to keep alive regardless.

Pearl had mentioned that Roronoa was serious about fulfilling his responsibilities, so that was a decent start. Enough to keep him from maiming the boy on sight, at least.

* * *

This was a challenge, as I find it hard to get inside the heads of these two. I hope I managed to make it work.


	79. Aftermath

**Aftermath **

Shanks was overseeing the Whitebeard pirates boarding his ships when there was a whoosh and a splash and a tall mermaid with very curly orange hair dropped onto the deck beside him holding a piece of paper.

"Shanks, meet Tempest," came the voice of Spitfire –Gol D. Spitfire as he now knew her to be– from above where she was perched on the head of a Sea King large enough to swallow the Red Force whole. "Tempest, meet Red-Hair Shanks. I've got to go make sure everyone on Fishman who wants to leave now we've gone public can do so, so I'll catch up again past the Red Line." Her mount sank into the water with barely a ripple.

"So what brings you here?" Shanks asked his guest. Tempest proffered the sheet of paper and the pirate noticed she had one of Lisska's messenger fish curled around her shoulder. He accepted the paper, noting that the message had been scrawled in blood.

_Need raw material._

"What does she mean when she says she needs raw material?" Shanks asked a little suspiciously.

"It means her current patient has lost so much of their body mass that they can't replace it without external help," Tempest said quietly, "but they aren't in any condition to eat and so gain it that way. Fox-chan knows I'm always willing to assist in these cases so she sent me a note. Can you direct me to her?"

"Assist?"

"Transfusions, transplants or grafts," Tempest elaborated, still pleasantly calm. "Directions?"

"Well she should be in my room but I haven't checked recently," Shanks said, escorting the fourteen-foot beauty with striped fins to the door of his private cabin and opening the door. As it opened Tempest wrinkled her nose and the pirate had to stifle a sneeze: it stank like a slaughterhouse in there. Following his guest who hurried inside, Shanks closed the door and stared around at the mess.

Half the floor was covered in blood and thicker, darker things, there was an unrecognisable dead body with a sunken, hollow-looking torso lying in the middle of the mess and Fox was hunched over it, wearing only a bloody vest on her upper half and her arms were gore-stained to the shoulders, one buried inside the chest cavity to the elbow. Her face had bloody smudges here and there from where she'd wiped her skin, her hair was fighting its way out of her braids and her legs was so drenched in what looked –and smelled– like liquefied internal organs those clothes were probably a lost cause. More worrying was the steady glow from every inch of her skin and her patient's and the look of absolute focus on her face.

"Fox-chan?" Tempest said lightly, not seeming all that surprised at the horror.

"Hm?" Fox hummed inquiringly. "Temp?"

"In the flesh, Fox-chan," the mermaid said, removing her boots, tearing away the ragged remains of her trousers and piling them in a corner with her green coat. "What do you need?"

"A pound of flesh, at least four ounces of bone, half your liver, a square foot of skin and a willingness to adopt another stray," Fox rattled out, one arm still buried in her victim's chest. Shanks sidled around to get a better look at the face; he suspected he knew who this was but he wanted to make sure. Marco had mentioned Ace' body had been stolen by the Phantom Fox…

Tempest pulled her shirt off over her head and produced a knife. "Cut away, Fox-chan."

"Shanks, lend me a hand?" Fox said, the blood sliding off one arm like water from an oiled surface. "Doesn't have to be _your_ hand, but I need some help and my preferred choice is several hundred miles away babysitting Ace' soul for me."

Shanks blinked and decided he didn't want to know. "Any preferences?"

"Marco would be nice, but he's probably busy," Fox –because this really wasn't Lisska– mused, her other arm sliding out of Ace' stomach with a sucking pop, blood and gore streaming off her fingers. "Izo would be good if he can stand the mess but I'll settle for anyone with a level head who'll obey orders no matter how insane. It's not my fault how my Devil Fruit works." She accepted the scalpel-like blade from the tall mermaid, placed her other hand flat against the woman's waist, cut in and casually snapped out a floating rib, hands glowing steadily. "Tempest and I will need calcium and iron-rich food; rare Sea King joints, bone and all, I should think."

"Even for your lovely assistant?" Shanks asked, surprised and slightly nauseated. Lisska never ate Sea King but she did occasionally eat other meat. Mermaids however were notorious for not eating any kind of meat or fish. For them to ask for Sea King meat was very unusual.

"I make an exception to my preferences in certain circumstances," Tempest said quietly, not looking down at the impromptu surgery going on below her ample chest.

"That doesn't look very sanitary," Shanks joked as Fox made a small horizontal cut and stuck her fingers inside the mermaid's abdominal cavity.

"Control over life, Shanks," the gore-spattered woman said absently. "Everything spilt is totally dead and sterile; not infectious at all. It just looks and smells dreadful."

"I'll take your word for it," the redhead said brightly, headed back towards the door, "and I'll see about finding you food and a helper. Izo you said?"

"Mm hm," Fox agreed, juggling a nub of unidentifiable tissue in the hand holding the scalpel and smoothing over the cut she'd just made with the hand holding the bloody rib. "Temp knows the drill."

"You've done this before?" Shanks had to ask.

"There's a reason I offered you your arm back that time," Fox said, bending over Ace' body and sticking glowing hands back into his abdominal cavity, "and it wasn't the joke you took it for; that offer's still open for later by the way. This is the biggest, most complicated thing I've ever done but it_ is_ doable, provided Hothead here doesn't panic when he wakes up."

Shanks left. He was firmly of the opinion that there were things sensible men did _not_ need to know and how Lisska intended to put Ace back together using her friend as spare parts was definitely one of them.

* * *

Tempest knelt quietly on the stained, sticky cabin floor and watched Fox work. What her friend's daughter could do never ceased to amaze her: Ace would have been considered a lost cause by any real doctor but Fox was putting him back together with ingenuity, precision and sheer bullheadedness. He would probably look rather different by the time the Devil Fruit User was finished, as she would have to adjust all the rest of his tissues sufficiently for him not to reject the transplants, but he would be alive and fully whole. Hopefully he wouldn't mind acquiring another blood family.

The fourteen-foot mermaid had first agreed to assist Fox-chan in an operation of this kind when the younger woman had been asked to help a child with a blood condition. Fox' solution had been to adjust the child's entire body, replacing the part that was causing the problem with one that worked. However as the condition had been inherited from a parent, the parents couldn't help.

Tempest had offered because she didn't want the child to die and quietly longed for children of her own, children she couldn't have due to an unfortunate combination of inherited anatomical problems. Fox was reluctant to mess with the reproductive system on principle and had told her that her body didn't recognise the problem, making it practically impossible for the healer to use her Devil Fruit Ability to fix it. After the success of the procedure the child had gone through Tempest had offered her flesh and blood for any further operations that required extra help and had in this way acquired three more 'children' to call her own. Portgas D. Ace required far more assistance than she'd ever had to give in one sitting before, but a week of good meals and a little help from Fox would replace what was missing as through it had never been lost.

The mermaid didn't care that it was illegal for merfolk to give blood to humans; Fox didn't perform blood transfusions if she could help it and there were no laws against things thought impossible, like rebuilding a person's spine from donated bone or replacing a liver. By the time Fox was finished Ace would be Tempest's blood relative and truly a child of their newly-late father, Whitebeard. She didn't think Ace would mind, though hopefully his body would not change too much as a result of the donation. Most of the merfolk she'd adopted this way had grown considerably taller after the procedure with a few slight changes in hair or eye colour. Ace however was pure human, so the adjustments might be more pronounced.

She smiled at the thought of Ace looking a bit more like the father he had claimed as Fox turned around again and cut into the mermaid's abdomen once more, glowing hands numbing all sensation and sealing the wound after she had taken what she wanted. Tempest had faith in the younger woman's abilities and was looking forward to meeting this brother that Fox spoke so fondly of.

* * *

We get to see how Fox is going about putting Ace back together and the limits on her Ability.


	80. Awakening

**Awakening **

Zoro sprawled on his back under a tree just above the high tide mark on the island Kuma had dumped him on, pondering the current situation. It was three days since the Marineford debacle and he had yet to see a newspaper that would tell him what was going on. All he had to go on was Fox' knowledge, but his lover had been elbow deep in Ace up until just a few hours ago, when she had determined he was well enough for her to be able to sleep without him dying on her. Which was why he was lying down here in the first place.

After a few hours of sensing Fox heal Luffy's older brother Zoro had determined that it was going to take ages and carefully moved the Flame Logia's soul down the connection and into the swordsman's own mind. Fox herself was too busy healing Ace to be able to drop everything should the other man wake unexpectedly and Zoro didn't like the idea of anyone wandering loose through his lover's head while she was pregnant and possibly messing things up for their child. So he'd brought Ace back where he could keep an eye on the older pirate. Pragmatically, as they were both male and didn't know each-other very well, Ace was less likely to seriously mess up Zoro's mind than he was Fox' own; Zoro also didn't have anything better to do than practice with his swords and maintain the odd half-trance that let him monitor both his surroundings and the alien presence at the edge of his soul.

Perona, the pink-haired Devil Fruit User who had found him when he landed here, was not too impressed by the antisocial habits babysitting Ace had caused Zoro to form, but seemed too pleased by the presence of another human being to complain too much. She had been very interested when she noticed he was capable of leaving his own body much as she did without ever having eaten Devil Fruit, but lost interest when the swordsman told her he could only go to one specific place.

Ace had not stirred once in three days, but now his body was well enough to sustain itself without Fox' conscious assistance his soul needed to go back. However as Zoro had it, he was the one who had to put it back. Fox had also warned him that having Ace attached to him as well as to her meant the swordsman would have his own, separate bond connecting him to the Flame Logia. It wouldn't be anywhere near as strong and clear as the bond he shared with Fox, or even the bond Fox now shared with Ace, but it was there and he couldn't get rid of it without damaging himself. Which was why Zoro was meditating under a tree on the part of the island closest to where Fox was; he was looking for that separate connection so he could push Ace back down it.

Sinking into his mindscape –which was ridiculously easy now– he landed in a small hollow not far from the round pool that connected him to Fox. This hollow was also where he'd left Ace, who was floating under a tree like a green-gold will o' wisp. Zoro had tracked the changes Luffy's brother had gone through the longer he stayed in the swordsman's mindscape and wasn't sure if they were a result of what Fox was doing to his body miles away on the Red Force or a result of how long Ace had been detached from said body. Rather than looking like he had in real life but with hands made of fire and a coating of flame on his skin, Ace now looked to be entirely made of green-gold fire with bluish-black flames where hair had been. He also didn't have any clothes anymore, just wearing that string of red beads around his neck which glowed like burning coals. Not that Zoro could talk; in his mindscape the only thing he wore that could properly be considered clothing was his haramaki.

When he'd first brought Ace here it had just been a hollow in the ground beside one of the little streams that ran out of the pool connecting Zoro to Fox, but now there were a dozen trees around it and smooth volcanic rock rather than grass immediately under the bubble. Zoro frowned. When he'd first visited Fox' mind there hadn't been a reef at all, just a slightly different patch of water, but the reef had emerged over time and the last time he'd stopped by there had been shingle on the top above the waterline and a few mosses. Probably there'd be an island eventually, an island that was his rather than hers. The trees around Ace were different to the ones dotted here and there on the rest of the swordsman's mental landscape: they belonged in deep jungle rather than on a grassy plain. The green-haired asura looked around, taking in the hanging vines, the ferns and the thick leaf litter. There was even a smell of rotting vegetation and wispy witch-lights hovering here and there. Yes, this definitely wasn't his. He'd never thought of Ace as a jungle kind of person. A desert person seemed more plausible. Shaking his head, he glanced through the trees; those ghost-lights went a lot further than seemed possible considering the size of the grove…

Ah. That had to be the way back to Ace' mind then. Follow the fire; logical considering his Devil Fruit. Zoro poked the fire-filled bubble with a careful finger, just to check whether it could be moved. It drifted a little in the direction he had pushed. Shaking his head at the sheer ridiculousness of his situation –not even Usopp could tell this story with a straight face– Zoro gently herded the bubble towards the ghost-lights, his clawed feet squelching slightly on the damp leaves underfoot. He didn't consider the impossibility of how the bubble moved between the trees without getting punctured when the branches and lianas were brushing against his own head and arms every other second; that way lay madness.

As the jungle grew thicker and darker and the sounds of wildlife began to echo above and around him, Zoro wondered if this really was a good idea. Ace probably wouldn't take kindly to a stranger in what he instinctively recognised as being _private space_. However he didn't have time to reconsider as the jungle opened out onto a steep, scrubby hillside covered with plants that burned well and regenerated quickly; Zoro had once visited a similar island where fires were a regular occurrence and the vegetation thrived on the charcoal that lay thickly on the ground.

Then he realised the bubble had popped and quickly glanced around with all three pairs of eyes for where the older pirate had gone.

* * *

This chapter just wanted to stop here. It's mostly metaphysical and abstract, with Zoro who doesn't think too deeply into things but is nonetheless very perceptive.


	81. Coherence

**Coherence **

Ace' first thought on emerging from sticky, cloying darkness was barely even a thought at all and more a sensation of blind, primal panic that made him lash out blindly at whatever it was that he _knew_ shouldn't be there.

_On Kuraigana Island Zoro jerked awake, rolled over and swore horribly, rubbing his chest where the green fireball had blasted him. So what if it wasn't real; it had still burned like hell!_

The feeling quickly passed however and he flailed against the heavy feeling weighing his body down. He felt like his bones had been turned to lead and his brain was full of treacle. What had happened? Where was he? Why did everything ache?

"Uuuurgh," he moaned, rubbing his eyes with one hand. As he tried to roll over he hit a warm –familiar– body. Fox, whose damp hair was loosely braided and tangled around his other arm. From what he could tell he was only wearing bandages and boxers, but she seemed to be wearing even less: bikini bottoms and nothing else, by the feel of things. Then there was the matter of the bed and the room, neither of which he recognised. There was a faint smell of old blood and sake hanging around, they were on a fairly large ship by the feel of the roll and he could hear familiar voices filtering down from the deck, but this definitely wasn't the Moby Dick or any of the other ships in the fleet.

As he shifted a sudden deep ache in his chest brought him up short, gasping for breath. What had-

_Impel Down. Marineford. Luffy._

_Akainu._

Ace tried to breathe deeply and evenly; setting the sheets on fire because he had hyperventilated would be bad, especially with Fox wrapped around him. His sudden spike in temperature disturbed his bedmate, who grumbled incoherently, rolled partly on top of him and opened her eyes a crack.

"Ace?" she mumbled, one hand untangling her hair while the other ran up his chest, glowing softly and tickling under the skin. "Whazzup?"

"Where are we? What happened? Where's Luffy?" Ace asked as his brief instant of terror faded away and left him feeling like he'd just tried to wrestle with Pops and lost.

"In order, the Red Force, you nearly died and safely healing," Fox muttered, stretching like a cat and yawning. "Your almost-execution was three days ago, by the way. Now go back to sleep." She curled up against his shoulder, buried her face in the side of his neck and drifted off in seconds. Ace wanted to ask more, but exhaustion rolled over him like a tidal wave and he sunk back into oblivion like a stone.

* * *

Ace dreamed. First he dreamed of Impel Down, of darkness, isolation and being forgotten. It was boring and lonely and disheartening but it was also distant and unreal. Then he dreamt of Marineford, standing on that execution stand and seeing Luffy trying to rescue him but failing and falling and Akainu reaching out a molten hand towards him and Ace screaming for his brother as Luffy burned-

"Ace!"

He woke up with a jerk and clutched at the warm body hovering over him, gasping and panting as tears rolled down his face.

"Luffy is fine," a soothing voice told him, cutting through the horror and the terror and the smell of burning flesh etched in his memory. "He's sleeping and healing and there is nothing wrong with him other than exhaustion. Calm down. Your brother is safe and so are you. Breathe, Hothead."

The nickname brought him back to reality more than anything else. "Fox," he rasped, clinging desperately onto her body and burying his face in her neck, breathing in the scent of seawater, steel and limes that was uniquely her. A hand rubbed firmly up and down his back as his best friend hummed a drinking song under her breath. The gentle vibration and the steady comfort helped Ace get himself back under control and his grip on Fox' ribs loosened.

"Sorry," he whispered, aware that it was the middle of the night.

"You're forgiven," Fox said promptly, "but just for waking me up; a nightmare is nothing you need to apologise for. I've had more than my fare share, remember?"

Ace did indeed remember. Fox' nightmares had been infrequent but extremely disturbing, leaving her terrified, incoherent and holding onto him so tightly he could barely breathe. Her babble never made any sense when she was like that and neither did her fears, but he recognised that fear wasn't rational and had generally managed to persuade her to go back to sleep. Why Fox would fear people taking her away in the middle of the night Ace had no idea, but he had a sinking feeling that particular fear had a basis in fact no matter how strange it seemed.

"Are you sure Luffy's okay?" he whispered, feeling stupid but having to ask.

"I'm monitoring him," Fox mumbled, twitching her braid so he wasn't lying on top of it. "He's unconscious and healing. Jinbe's with him."

Oh. Ace had asked Jinbe to keep an eye on Luffy for him if the worst came to the worst, but the fishman hadn't made any promises. That he'd gone through with Ace' request was… nice. Reassuring too; Jinbe would look after his brother. He relaxed abruptly, suddenly feeling tired again. "Sorry," he muttered again.

"S'okay," Fox yawned. "I worry 'bout him too."

Ace frowned. He seemed to remember Fox saying they were on the Red Force, but that didn't make sense. He was a Whitebeard Pirate, so he should be on the Moby Dick. Just like the quiet voices out on deck should have been; he'd recognize the distant rumble of Jozu speaking anywhere.

"Why are we on the Red Force?"

"D'you remember Akainu tried to sink the Moby Dick, so Spitfire had Jaws move it?"

"Yeah…" Ace conceded.

"Well it's in a bad way and needs fixing. The coating's shot for one and there're holes in the deck and half the rigging's ash. So Spitfire's putting it somewhere safe where it can be fixed later and Shanks is giving us a lift back to the New World."

"I don't remember Shanks being at Marineford," Ace said slowly.

"He arrived after you passed out," Fox said quietly.

Passed out; what a nice euphemism. He'd had a hole burnt right through him. "How am I even alive?" he whispered incredulously, suddenly understanding why he hurt in all kinds of places and could barely move.

"Luffy ordered me to keep you from dying," Fox muttered, one hand gripping the nape of his neck, "but I probably would have done it anyway. Can this wait until morning?"

Ace closed his eyes. He hurt, he was tired and he could tell the coming conversation would not be even remotely fun. "Sure it can wait," he sighed, pulling her closer into his arms and letting his mind drift. Whatever Fox had done to bring him back from the brink of death probably had something to do with the way he could feel her heartbeat in his head, but right now he didn't care. He was alive, Luffy was alive and that was enough.

* * *

Ace wakes up. Unpleasant revalations will keep until later though.


	82. Pain

**Pain**

Ace was woken the next morning by his stomach, which rumbled piteously and threatened to hold any and all surrounding organs hostage if it wasn't fed in the next five minutes. The Flame Logia groaned, carefully levering himself up into a sitting position and getting a better look at the bandages swathing his torso. There wasn't an inch of skin to be seen between his armpits and his hips and everything he couldn't see felt tender and fragile. Even his stomach twinged, but it wasn't making him feel any less ravenous. Ace looked around for his clothes; he could go to breakfast as he was, but he'd be happier in trousers at least. He'd likely lost his boots forever, like he had his knife, but that couldn't be helped. At least he wasn't dead.

The cabin door opened and Fox walked in, wearing dark purple deck trousers, a mint green strappy top and had her hair pinned up in two buns on either side of her head. She was carrying a shirt and a pair of shorts he recognised at once.

"Yep, your shorts survived!" she told him with a grin. "The shirt I borrowed from Shanks; I'd rather you kept the bandages clean if at all possible."

"Shanks lent me a shirt?" Ace had trouble believing it.

Fox grinned wickedly. "Well he's already lent you his bed and his cabin; what's a shirt after that?"

Ace' eyes bulged. "What? This is Shanks' cabin?" Come to think of it, it _was_ very nice other than the faint blood smell. But he barely even knew the man: he was a frigging Yonko! On his own flagship! "But!"

Fox swept over and placed a finger over his lips. "But nothing; I've been living in this cabin for the past week anyway and when you got brought on board you were dumped in here. I fixed you up on the floor and Shanks really didn't fancy sticking around while I was treating you like a jigsaw puzzle, so he bunked with Beckman." She paused thoughtfully. "He may kick you out now you're well enough to walk around, but that's up to him. He was certainly teasing me about my priorities last night."

"Priorities?" Ace repeated faintly as he pulled his shorts on and accepted the pair of deck shoes Fox had scavenged from somewhere.

"He was claiming to be jealous because you were getting all the attention," Fox said calmly, helping him into the shirt and buttoning up the front, "but that's his idea of a joke, since until you arrived I was cuddling up with him." It was definitely Shanks' shirt: the left sleeve was far less worn than the right one. Ace' brain then caught up with his ears and he remembered Fox mentioning once that he and Marco were not the only people she treated like her personal cuddle toys.

"You were sleeping in here? With Red-Hair Shanks?!" He squeaked. It was one thing to hear it in passing; it might have been her idea of a joke. But to _know_ she really did it… Fox worried him sometimes.

Fox smirked at him, clearly enjoying his freak-out. "He's a much cuddlier drunk than you or Marco," she informed him brightly, "despite having only half the number of hands."

"Stop, please," Ace begged, leaning his forehead against her chest and closing his eyes. "Mercy." There were things he didn't need to know and what his best friend got up to with Shanks when they were both drunk was one of them. Bad enough that her understanding of what constituted intimacy was horrifically skewed; he didn't want the details.

Fox giggled. "Okay, I'll stop Hothead. Now, I got the impression you were hungry?"

Now that his brain was no longer being traumatised his stomach reminded him that his last meal had been days away and it had just been prison slop. He hadn't had real food in over a month.

"Food?" he begged, pouting hopefully. Fox wasn't quite a sucker for the puppy look, but it amused her enough that she usually folded where food was concerned. As expected, she smiled fondly at him.

"Yes, you can eat. However you are _not_ to drink any alcohol as you barely have any liver at the moment and it is working overtime just keeping you alive," she warned him. "Your stomach is also much smaller than you remember it being, so eat slowly and stop when you feel full. Having you feel sick from overeating would slow your recovery."

Ace was about to complain when the spectre of Akainu loomed in his mind and he remembered exactly where his injury had been. He was abruptly relieved he even had a stomach after that, never mind a liver. He patted his stomach, inordinately relieved by the feel of muscle and skin under the bandages. A hand touched his shoulder and he looked up into Fox' sympathetic face:

"On your feet, Hothead." She offered him a hand. Ace accepted and let her help him to his feet; his gut twinged and there was a distinct feeling of things getting uncomfortably stretched, but no sharp pain suggesting he'd ripped something.

"Ow," he said flatly, then noticed he was no longer looking slightly up to meet his best friend's eyes. In fact, he was looking slightly _down_.

"I'm taller than you," he said stupidly, his brain going blank. "How the hell am I three inches taller than I was last week?!"

Fox coughed. "I poured masses of energy into both healing you and keeping you alive while I replaced all those important internal bits you lost," she said mildly. "It's not too surprising that your body decided to take advantage and had a growth spurt. With how much of my power is still bouncing around inside you and how much more I'm going to be using to make sure you recover properly, I doubt you're going to stop growing any time soon. As soon as your stomach recovers you're going to eat like a Sea King for months."

Ace blinked, then grinned. "I'm gonna be tall, huh? Neat." A thought struck him. "Taller than Marco?"

Fox snorted. "You're already almost an inch taller than me, Ace. Marco's barely any taller than that."

Ace smirked. He was going to be taller than Marco!

* * *

Fox scrounged a meal from the kitchen for him since it wasn't strictly breakfast time yet and Ace leant against one of the palm trees growing on the deck of the Red Force, carefully making headway through the food and watching his crew mingle with the Red-Hair Pirates. Everyone looked injured in one way or another: bandages peeking through clothes, plasters on faces, people favouring one arm or the other or limping while others still walked with the care that suggested damaged ribs. He couldn't see Pops though, which really bothered him. He tried to remember more of what had happened at Marineford.

Pops had said he was a remnant of his era, Ace remembered, and something about not being carried into the next one. Did that mean-

"Ace!"

He was spun around and fiercely hugged, making his eyes water as his tender stomach protested.

"Marco? Air!" he gasped. His brother released him, tears in his eyes and a bandage around his head.

"Ace! You're _alive_, yoi!" Marco breathed in sheer amazement before hugging him again, more carefully this time. The phoenix Zoan then released him and turned to face Fox.

"You did it, yoi" the First Division Commander said, voice choked.

Fox nodded. "I did," she said softly. Marco dropped to his knees and touched his forehead to the deck.

"Dracule Lisska, _thank-you _for saving my brother's life. I am forever in your debt."

"None of that Marco, please," Fox said, her face twisting in something that might have been hurt. "No debts. I did it for myself as much as for anyone else."

Marco sat up, but stayed on his knees. "Sweetheart, you still brought him back;" he said gently, "nobody else could have done it, yoi. You spent three days and nights working on him without stopping to eat or sleep when everyone else thought it was a lost cause and today Ace isn't just alive, but up and walking about. That's pretty much a miracle, yoi." He smiled, getting up. "Everyone's going to be wanting to thank you, so you'd better get used to the awed respect."

Fox pouted. "I'd rather have a hug."

Marco chuckled, then did something that made Ace choke on his mouthful of meat: he wrapped his arms around Fox and kissed her soundly. "Thank-you, yoi," he said again after letting go of her.

"The hell, Marco?!" Ace spluttered. The phoenix Zoan smirked, inclining his head towards where Fox was leaning heavily on one of the palm trees with glassy eyes.

"She didn't mind, yoi," the blond pointed out. "You know she likes kisses."

Yes, Ace knew. But Marco had never kissed her like _that_ before; he generally treated Fox like a daughter or little sister. That had _not_ been sibling behaviour.

"What happened to her being like your baby sister?" the flame Logia muttered, staring mournfully at the food he didn't have the appetite to finish. Being ill sucked.

"She still is, yoi," Marco said mildly. "But special exceptions can be made when miracles happen. You had a hole right through your middle and she still managed to fix you; I'd say that qualified as miraculous, yoi."

Ace shivered. He'd known he'd been mortally injured but hearing about it brought back memories of things he hadn't really noticed at the time, like how he'd lost all feeling below the waist.

"Marco, no traumatising my patient," Fox said, walking over and taking Ace' plate away.

"Fox?" Ace asked, catching her wrist. "Where's Pops?"

Suddenly he didn't have to ask: a sensory memory shot across his mind, the feel of someone precious but not close being snuffed out completely, torn away forever. Pain danced across his senses and a sense of terrible loss gripped his heart as the world went grey and there was a distant clatter of falling crockery.

"Ace? Ace!" It wasn't his memory; he'd never been able to feel the deaths of his family like that. But he _knew_ now that Whitebeard was dead, that Pops had never left Marineford.

"Ace!" He blinked uncomprehendingly at the two worried faces in front of him. Why was he kneeling on the deck?

"Marco?" He said softly, "Pops is dead, isn't he?"

Marco's face fell instantly and he bowed his head. "Yeah. Blackbeard and his crew killed him, yoi."

Ace screamed, clutching his head in his hands. If only he'd never chased after Teach! If only he hadn't lost on Banaro! If only he hadn't been so stupid-

Sharp pain in his ear brought him back to reality.

"Ow! Ow ow ouch!" He swatted at Fox, who had his ear in an iron grip.

"Remember that discussion we had about free will?" she said, steel in her tone. "This is _not_ your fault."

"But-!"

"But nothing," Fox said firmly. "Your Pops chose his death. He went out with a bang like he always wanted to and kicked off the new era by announcing to the world that One Piece really is out there. Don't disrespect him by trying to make out it was all about you!"

Ace gaped like a fish. He'd never meant it like that! "I know it's not about me!" he blurted out, wiping tears off his face.

"Then why are you trying to take responsibility for your captain's decisions?" his friend asked him sweetly.

Ace opened his mouth, paused and closed it. It was a trap, dammit! "I'm an idiot," he muttered, feeling defeated. Why did Fox always have to be right?

"We knew that already," Marco said, "but you're our idiot, yoi."

* * *

Ace wakes up properly and finds out about Whitebeard. And Marco! I've missed writing Marco.


	83. Revelation

**Revelation **

By lunchtime Ace had been welcomed back by every member of the Whitebeard Pirates on board the Red Force and had gained significant amusement from watching his brothers thank Fox. He had no idea why their gratitude made his best friend so uncomfortable but it was really, really funny seeing her squirm. She was usually so blatantly shameless he hadn't realised she _could_ act so bashful about anything. It was something he really, really wanted to see more of.

"You know, you're cute when you're embarrassed," he commented as they sat down for lunch alongside the other seven Whitebeard Division Commanders on board and Shanks' elite. The remaining seven Division Commanders were captaining the ships that remained of Pops' fleet or liaising with Spitfire; she apparently had over two hundred of the Whitebeard Pirates with her, including Fossa and Haruta, after evacuating them with one of her Sea Kings. Sea Kings being much, much faster than a ship, they were assumed to be a good way ahead of the rest of the convoy.

Fox shoved him irritably. "It's not that funny," she muttered, ignoring the food spread across the middle of the table as the other pirates all dug in.

"It kinda is," Shanks agreed from her other side, winking at Ace. "I've never seen you blush so much before, Eyas. You do look very cute when you're red."

Fox made another inarticulate sound as a Red-Hair Pirate Ace didn't recognise came around behind them and put a plate loaded with extremely appetising food right in front of her. Ace was about to steal a bit when a hand came down on his wrist like a steel band.

"No stealing from Fox," Benn Beckman said mildly, not even looking up from his own meal as he held Ace' wrist hostage.

"Why not? She never minded before," Ace complained as he was released.

"Ooh, you mean to say you don't know?" Shanks asked, grinning widely as Fox kept her head down and attacked her food.

"Don't know what, yoi?" Marco asked from across the table.

"You didn't tell any of them, Eyas?" Shanks inquired, poking Fox' shoulder.

"When have I had time?" Fox asked, glancing up from her food.

"You've been up all morning!" Shanks pointed out. "Oh, are you embarrassed?"

"No," Fox said flatly.

"Then why keep it secret?"

"I wasn't keeping it secret Shanks; I just didn't know how to introduce it into conversation."

"You managed telling me just fine," Red-Hair said mildly, tone rather at odds with the massive grin splitting his face as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. The discussion now had the attention of the entire table, all the Whitebeard Pirates looking curious.

"You're you," Fox said blandly. "I've known you forever. Everyone's been too busy thanking me for what I did to Ace for anything else to be mentioned."

"Well in that case I'll break the news," Shanks said brightly. "Cutie's pregnant!"

Ace' jaw dropped as instant pandemonium broke out and the various Division Commanders started asking questions all at once. Shanks was laughing at the chaos, Beckman just shook his head and went on eating and Fox rolled her eyes, shoving Red-Hair's arm off her shoulder.

"Who's the father, yoi?" Marco asked.

"Is it Red-Hair?" Izo asked.

"Alas no," Shanks said dramatically. "I thought you loved me Eyas, I really did, but you abandoned me for a younger man."

"If I didn't love you I wouldn't put up with you," Fox said dryly, "and if you really cared that much you had years to get your act together and propose. I might even have said yes. Is it any surprise I found myself someone more decisive?"

Ace thought they were just messing with each-other; Fox was a tease at times and Shanks clearly brought out that side of her. "So who is it then?" he asked. Shanks sniggered.

"Eyas has a boy toy!" he carolled, ducking the mug Fox launched at his head in retaliation.

"You know, I don't think you need such a high alcohol tolerance, captain," the white-haired woman threatened, fingers glowing. "How about I do something to reduce it?"

Ace hadn't ever seen anyone move that fast outside of a fight. One minute Shanks was sat at the table, the next he was halfway across the room, Fox hot at his heels as the rest of his crew laughed and took bets. Beckman shook his head.

"Is this normal, yoi?" Marco asked the Red-Hair Pirates' first mate.

"Pretty much," the grey-haired pirate admitted. "She's threatened his alcohol tolerance before, but she isn't usually this touchy; probably something to do with her hormone levels."

"So she really is pregnant," Ace muttered.

"Very definitely," Beckman confirmed.

"So who is the father?" Jozu asked. Beckman glanced down the table at the interested faces.

"Her current lover, I believe," he said blandly.

"I thought she stopped dating after Mihawk murdered her girlfriend last year?" Ace mused curiously. He knew Fox was looking for someone to spend the rest of her life with; she'd talked about it with him one time. Ace liked the idea of having a special someone to grow old with but didn't think he'd find anyone willing to overlook his heritage, disownment or not.

"Girlfriend? I didn't hear about _that_," Yassop said interestedly, keeping an eye on the chase zigzagging across the dining room. "Would that have been how Hawk-Eyes got that beautiful shiner last autumn?"

Marco coughed. "This really isn't the time, yoi," he pointed out mildly. "I would like to know where this guy came from though, since she certainly never mentioned anyone in her letters."

Beckman was clearly enjoying being the person in the know, as he took another long look at his audience and had a mouthful of grog. "She joined the Straw-Hat Pirates back in the summer," he said eventually, "and there's only one swordsman in that crew."

Fox' taste for swordsmen –and swordswomen– was not exactly a secret; other than Ace and Marco the Commanders she got on with best among the Whitebeard Pirates were Vista, Haruta and Thatch. Ace frowned at the reminder of his nakama's death.

"Roronoa Zoro the Pirate Hunter, yoi?" Marco mused. "Interesting."

Ace remembered Roronoa from Alabasta: green hair, three swords and moved like a swordsman. Not just someone who knew a few moves, but a _real_ swordsman. He had also looked like the level-headed one of his little brother's crew. "I'm guessing he's rather younger than Fox, given how Shanks is teasing her about getting a boy toy," he said aloud, watching said woman corner Red-Hair and trip him up when he tried to get away again.

Beckman smiled. "Nineteen, I believe," he said calmly. "From what Pearl told me I get the impression he'll be sticking around. Provided he survives Mihawk, of course."

"You write to Pearl, yoi?" Marco asked. Beckman nodded. Ace wasn't sure what he'd missed there, but as Shanks had somehow persuaded Fox to forgive him and come back to the table, he didn't get a chance to find out.

"You're so mean, Eyas," Red-Hair complained as he sat down again and grabbed another mug of alcohol.

"No, mean would be making your body react to alcohol like the poison it is in any quantity," Fox said sweetly. Shanks went white; he wasn't the only one to do so. That was a cruel thing to threaten a pirate with.

"You wouldn't?" Red-Hair begged. "Please?"

Fox eyed him thoughtfully. "You know, I'm not sure," she said slowly. "I'm sure Beckman would appreciate the change. You'd save money too. Probably live longer as well."

"What's the point of a long life if you can't have fun?!" Shanks said, more than slightly panicky now. "How can you have a real party without sake? I'd die of misery! You'd drive me into an early grave!"

Fox tilted her head on one side. "True," she conceded. "And you're cute when you're hung-over. Oh well, so much for that idea."

"I'm a _man_, Eyas," Shanks complained, "We're never _cute_."

Fox raised an eyebrow. "You are when you wake up with a hangover and try to use me as a pillow," she said evenly.

"You're ruining my image," Red-Hair complained, but the grin on his face suggested he wasn't seriously bothered.

Ace was having trouble adjusting his world view to include Fox' relationship with Red-Hair Shanks: she'd always seemed a bit wary of Pops, so seeing her on friendly terms with someone equally strong and dangerous was surprising.

"How'd you two meet?" he asked.

Shanks grinned. "She was a cute toddler once!" he said, reaching out to mess with Fox' hair. "Always laughing and trying to eat my hair."

"He was my first official babysitter," Fox added. "How old were you then? Eighteen?"

"Nineteen," Shanks corrected her. "You were adorable then, all golden fuzz and big eyes. Well, you're still adorable but you're spikier and more talkative and I can't tuck you in the crook of my arm while I'm fighting."

Fox blinked. "You fought while holding me? That I didn't know."

Shanks huffed. "What kind of idiot do you take me for? Like I'd tell Mihawk that happened when he left you with me. It was only once or twice."

"More like half-a-dozen times, captain," Beckman interjected. "We did get attacked a lot more back then."

"Well none of them ever lived to tell the tale and my little eyas never got hurt, so I don't see how it matters," Shanks said firmly.

"You know, sometimes I really wonder how you ever kept my father from killing you out of sheer frustration," Fox mused. "Any other incidents I should know about before I decide whether you get to babysit _my_ baby?"

"All the times she fell overboard?" Beckman offered.

"Hey! She can breathe underwater!" Shanks protested. "She floated pretty well as a toddler and she could swim properly by the time she was three. We always fished her out before anything tried to eat her."

"Successfully ate her," Beckman corrected, a smile lurking around the corners of his mouth.

"That was only once!"

"And people wonder why I turned out so crazy," Fox said, shaking her head. "It's a wonder I'm as balanced as I am if that's what you put me through in my impressionable early years."

"You enjoyed all of it," Shanks insisted. "You hated leaving, though sometimes I wonder where your dad was leaving you when you weren't with us. I know we didn't teach you that song. Or how to pick locks, come to that. Who teaches a three-year-old to pick locks?"

Fox smiled. "Now that would be telling," she said, finishing her meal and pushing her plate away.

* * *

More of Ace on the Red Force and some of Fox' history with Shanks.


	84. Confusion

**Confusion**

Ace had wanted to spend more time with his fellow Whitebeard Pirates after lunch but after a sudden narcoleptic attack that nearly ruined all of Fox' hard work Marco ordered him back to bed.

"You were in pieces yesterday, yoi," the First Division Commander reminded him. "You need a lot more rest before you're well again."

Marco also persuaded Fox to get some more sleep, reminding her that she'd been up for three days straight and needed to rest more as well. It was rather awkward for Ace to be sharing a bed with his best friend when he knew she was involved with another guy and pregnant, but Fox didn't make anything of it so he soon relaxed. At least she was wearing a bit more now than she had been the previous night, though she had made him take off the borrowed shirt so she could keep skin contact.

"I need to be able to monitor your heath," she'd told him, "and skin contact is the most reliable way. If you develop complications I want to know as soon as it happens, not when you're puking blood or having a heart attack."

Ace had capitulated quickly at that and Fox had gone to sleep with her face buried in the nape of his neck and her arms around his chest. He had to wonder what her lover thought of her getting into bed with other men. He wouldn't like it at all if she was his lover. He yawned and sleep came with an abruptness that he had long since gotten used to.

* * *

Ace dreamed. Not nightmares, but long, rambling dreams that didn't make much sense. Not that he really noticed at the time; there was a lot less rational thought going on while dreaming. So he didn't feel any alarm when he dreamt of fighting Mihawk with three swords or of crafting an Eternal Pose. He also dreamt of his little brother's ship, of sailing with Luffy and his ragtag crew of highly capable rookie misfits –other than Fox who had never been a rookie– up a vertical current to an island in the clouds. He drifted disembodied in that dream, wandering across an island full of fighters and arriving in a ruined city in time to see Fox decapitate someone he instinctively knew was the Bad Guy while wearing an outfit that reminded him of the pictures he'd seen of her on Mystoria. She looked very sexy, so he wandered over to her and kissed her.

The kiss got very heated and his hands had been exploring under her dress when a fist hit the side of his head and he was suddenly fighting off a three-faced, six-armed, green-haired demon that couldn't seem to choose between ripping his limbs off and beating him to a squishy pulp. Ace retaliated by trying to burn it to ash, but it didn't catch fire: instead the city around them did and then they were falling down, down, down into the sea.

Ace knew the feeling of drowning very well indeed: when he'd been trying to kill Pops he'd been knocked overboard several times and they hadn't always been all that prompt in fishing him out again. The water weighed down on him, paralysing him and crushing his lungs. Weirdly enough, he could still just about breathe. He landed on the sea bed and looked around at the fish and odd coral formations as the six-armed demon landed a few feet away and gave him the evil eye. Ace raised his middle finger back and noticed absently that he was still on fire. Scratch that; he was _made_ of fire. That was neat. He was absorbed in checking out his new look when Fox appeared on the scene, wearing nothing but gold jewellery on her upper half and Yuda-tailed below the hips. It was a good look for her, especially with the golden hair and two pairs of sleek steel wings. He wondered if Shanks had seen those wings; he had said she was spikier than she used to be and those feathers were all sharp.

"The only people who've seen me like this are you and Zoro," Fox said. It wasn't quite words; there was language in there somewhere but there were pictures, sensations and concepts all tied up in it that conveyed her meaning far more precisely than mere language could ever achieve. Ace now knew that the six-armed demon who'd attacked him was Roronoa Zoro, Fox' lover, and that no matter how he looked on the outside this was who he really was. He was also rapidly gaining coherence and had a feeling this was real, never mind that he was supposed to be sleeping.

"Is this real?" he asked.

"For a given value of real," Fox agreed, communicating a whole lot of concepts that were highly mystical, complicated and intrinsically linked into how she'd put him back together and kept him alive. Including what the green-haired Asura had done while she was healing him.

"Sorry man," Ace apologised to the other man. "Wasn't quite myself back there."

Zoro cocked his head on one side, two pairs of eyes following Ace while the other pair watched Fox. "That wasn't exactly true, was it?" he said, voice deep and menacing. "You want her. Want her whimpering under your hands and body and screaming your name."

The images conjured as he spoke were vivid and detailed, involving all five senses, making Ace' body harden and his breath catch in his throat in a strangled moan.

"Did you mean to share that?" Fox asked, sounding a little breathless herself. Her words were accompanied by a dozen other brief flashes, kaleidoscope snatches of intimacy and passion that were not particularly explicit but still carried with them an erotic charge and a strong sense of longing.

The demon swordsman looked away. "Communicating like this is challenging," he grumbled, shifting uncomfortably.

"No privacy whatsoever," she confirmed gently, amusement threading through her words alongside an image of Shanks groping her in his sleep while nuzzling her ear. Zoro growled again.

"When was that?" Ace asked, an image of himself waking to a naked, sleeping Fox drooling on his chest flitting through his mind. There was a snort; Zoro thought that memory was funny for some reason. Another memory, this one not his own, flashed past his mind's eye: Fox slumped on a broader, scarred chest, strings of drool hanging from the corner of her mouth to puddle on tanned skin. Ace glanced over at the Asura.

"You too, huh?"

"Definitely not a goddess," Zoro confirmed, several different conversations flicking past in an instant. Ace chuckled, remembering his own meeting with Sako and how he'd teased Fox in Alabasta.

"Now you've stopped antagonising each-other," Fox said lightly, attracting their attention, "we get to the hard part."

"Hard part?" Ace echoed.

"We're stuck like this," Zoro muttered, granting Ace a flash of frustration-confusion and the difficulty of fighting when you really aren't sure how much of what you can feel is actually under your control. "Forever."

"So this kind of thing might happen again?" Ace asked, his dreams thus far coming back to him in flashes. None of those were his own memories, he realised now.

"Will happen again," Fox corrected him gently. "Sleep brings down the barriers. We'll always wander in our dreams; the trick is staying separate while awake. You didn't wander while you were unconscious so you're less confused than Zoro was, but you need to learn to stay within the limits of your own mind while conscious until you can instinctively recognise where the edges are." The images, concepts and sensations accompanying this monologue were many and most of them did not involve Zoro at all, but seven different faces, all male, and a sense of profound sorrow and loss.

"Your nakama," Zoro whispered, a white fox-mask and a shimmering sword flashing through his words alongside profound hatred for the World Nobles.

"I can't exactly control what I dream of," Ace admitted sheepishly, a dozen different fantasies involving Fox briefly surfacing, half of them involving other women. Zoro made a slightly strangled sound in his throat as Fox giggled, conjuring a much more realistic scene involving her and a lithe, dark-skinned woman with purple hair and a deep throaty chuckle.

"Laila?" Ace asked, his memory of Fox punching Mihawk in the face threaded through his words parallel to the memory of the hawk-eyed swordsman admitting his culpability with regards to her death.

"Laila," Fox confirmed wistfully, a barrage of memories involving the same dark woman shooting past: sparring together, picking mangos in Laila's orchard, fixing the roof of her farmhouse, milking goats, playing with her niece and making out on the beach under the stars while topless and dripping wet.

Zoro made another deep, hungry sound that had no visual component but made Ace shiver at the sheer lust and predatory intent that bloomed in his bones, begging to be let out.

"You realise that, as we are now, no two of us can be intimate without the third knowing what's going on?" Fox said quickly. "Mentally we are all stuck in the same room, as it were. We can ignore each-other to a point but certain things can't be ignored. Shared things in particular will be intrusive." A brief image splashed into being of the three of them in a small room, her and Zoro making out while Ace sat with his back to them with his hands over his ears and scowling.

Zoro subsided, his central face scowling blackly but the other one that Ace could see looked more thoughtful.

"I miss you," he said simply, conveying a tight tangle of wanting to hold, wanting to touch, wanting to spar and just plain wanting sex.

"Hmm," Fox agreed, an answering tangle of indecision and hormonal frustration bouncing back. Both Zoro and Ace rocked slightly on impact.

"I wish you'd let me help you with that," Ace said before his good sense caught up with whatever part of his mind had temporarily taken charge. Probably his libido; it _would_ get him into trouble. The way Zoro turned to stare piercingly at him and three of his hands dropped to caress the hilts of the swords at his waist suggested he was going to pay for that comment.

"Bad idea," Fox said firmly. "Zoro would chase after you into your mind and might end up bodysnatching you." The brief image of Zoro's Asura silhouette superimposed on Ace' physical body wandered past. "That would just cause more confusion and we'd all get hurt."

Ace noted that Zoro was radiating a sense that bodysnatching might be worth it if it meant getting to have sex with his lover.

"Don't," Fox said flatly. "It's still Ace' body, so he'd be able to feel what was going on even if he couldn't control it."

Zoro pouted playfully, an entirely disturbing expression on a being so shamelessly predatory. "I'm having difficulty caring, since he'd feel it anyway," the Asura admitted candidly. "We're stuck, remember? I might as well make the most of it."

Fox folded her arms under her breasts, making them bounce appealingly. "Are you propositioning Ace, Zoro?" she inquired archly. "Or trying to wear down my will with the idea of a threesome?"

Both those images painted themselves vividly across the flame Logia's mind, making him briefly lose track of which reality was more important. The idea of having Fox pinned down between him and Zoro was rather appealing, though the image of Fox watching Zoro kiss him was brain-breaking in a whole new way as it was accompanied by Fox' very real erotic interest.

He mentally returned to the underwater grove to see Zoro pinning Fox down and tickling her mercilessly with all six hands, his face red with embarrassment.

"You, Limpet," Ace said decisively as he sat up, "are evil incarnate. I can't ever get away from you and you are going to use that to your advantage and wear me down until I obey your every whim, aren't you?" He paused. "Wait, you just did that on purpose to distract us both, didn't you?"

Zoro let up so she could answer. "Yes, I did," she admitted, "because what Asura-kun suggested is possible, but it all boils down to how much of a voyeur he's willing to be and I know that where I'm concerned he has no limits." Truth. Absolute, unadorned truth. Especially the bit about Zoro being willing to try anything if it meant he got to sex up his lover.

"Talk," Zoro said threateningly, interest swirling with anticipation.

Fox shook him off in a boneless movement and performed a move Ace had once seen Jinbe use. The water around them coiled in her grasp and the flame Logia barely had a moment to say "Shit!" before he was blasted away and into wakefulness.

* * *

Because it was bound to happen sooner rather than later and Zoro is both highly obsessive and very fatalistic. That is a bad combination as it leads a person to do things nobody else would ever consider.


	85. Price

**Price**

Ace woke up with a jerk and a gasp and would have fallen out of bed had the arm around his waist not tightened and pulled him back onto the mattress.

"Sorry about that," Fox muttered apologetically.

"So this is why you were so uncomfortable earlier," Ace said, putting things together now he was awake. "You didn't like how everyone was making out you'd miraculously healed me because of the strings attached. Very serious strings; are we really stuck?"

"Nothing can break the bonds except death," Fox said flatly, "and the death of any party will inflict serious mental injury upon the survivors. Death of more than half the bonded parties sends the survivors insane: they either suicide to escape the pain, shatter and go completely around the bend raving and frothing at the mouth, or go on indiscriminate killing sprees. I did the latter, by the way."

Ace remembered Zoro's memory of a mask and a sword, both of which had been familiar. "You're not just the greatest assassin on the seas, you're the Phantom Fox," he muttered incredulously. "You rescued me at Marineford."

"Not exactly rescued," Fox demurred. "That was Luffy. I just helped."

Ace snorted, remembering the bodies that had piled up around the execution stand. "I'd have been dead without you several times over. You beat Aokiji and Akainu several times; hell you chopped Kizaru's leg in half! You're seriously incredible with a sword, you know."

"I'd rather it didn't get spread around," Fox muttered. "I do not want that bounty attached to my face."

Ace sobered up at once, remembering the sheer insanity of the money attached to the mask on the Phantom. "Was that the killing spree you mentioned doing?"

"Hm," Fox bowed her head. "I killed everyone. Not just my oppressors, but my fellow sufferers and every other living thing I came across, down to the fish in the aquaria. Not my finest moment."

"How did you get out of Mariejois?"

Fox shrugged. "I jumped."

"What?!" Ace couldn't believe it; she'd jumped off the frigging Red Line?! Reaching out he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his lap, resting his face against her hair. "Were you crazy?!"

"I think I'd already established that," Fox said dryly.

"How did you not die?"

"I can still breathe underwater, you know," Fox said, "and the impact didn't kill me. Spitfire found me, dumped me on the nearest island –Mystoria incidentally– and left me there."

"Where you met Sako," Ace concluded. "He's a nice guy. So totally obsessed with serving you it's hilarious, but still a nice guy. Good taste in women, too."

"He introduced you to his wives?" Fox asked.

"He also mentioned you picked the older one out for him," Ace said teasingly, tugging on a strand of hair. "I didn't know you did matchmaking, Limpet."

"He asked me to, Hothead," Fox muttered, pink staining her cheeks. "After what he did for me I couldn't exactly say no."

"What _did_ he do for you? Other than introduce you to the joys of sex," Ace specified. "I know there's more to the story than that: I got a look at the mural in your temple. Something about Sako getting turned into a shark and you turning him back?"

Fox looked horrified. "They put that on the _wall_?" she moaned. "Oh, just what I didn't need." She face-planted into his shoulder. "Just kill me now," she mumbled miserably.

Interest bubbled in the back of Ace' mind; interest that wasn't just his. "Fox? Is that Zoro listening in?" he asked cautiously.

"Yeah," Fox mumbled. "He's bored and lonely so he's been eavesdropping almost constantly since we got separated."

"Where is he?"

"Kuraigana Island."

Ace sniggered. "Your father's primary hideout? That's going to be fun to watch."

"Weeks away though," Fox agreed. "I know he'll have stopped by to talk to my mother by now so hopefully he won't do anything I'd have to kill him for." She frowned blackly. "Nobody kills the father of my baby and gets to live afterwards."

Ace whistled lowly. "You're serious about that, aren't you?"

Fox glared up at him, golden eyes almost glowing in the dimness. "What kind of partner or parent would I be if I wasn't?"

Ace heart hurt a little at that declaration. Fox was so loyal and protective it was scary. Reassuring, but still scary. "A normal one?" he ventured.

Fox scoffed. "Normal is overrated."

The inquisitive feeling came back, more insistently.

"I think Zoro wants to know about the thing with the shark," Ace said quietly.

Fox sighed. "I may as well tell you both; it isn't like you won't find out eventually." She sighed unhappily. "You'll both laugh, I just know it."

"Is it that funny?" Ace asked, ducking back instinctively when she glared at him.

"I don't think it was remotely funny; well, I didn't at the time," Fox admitted. "At the time it was frightening and traumatic and humiliating. However it did snap me out of my depression and got me moving again and nobody actually died or got irreversibly harmed. It was also the final nail in the coffin that persuaded the locals that I _had_ to be some kind of deity, which I did not enjoy at all. So: I hated it, I hate being reminded of it but to an outside observer it is apparently very funny. I know my father thought so."

"Mihawk thought it was funny?"

"He laughed at me," Fox confirmed in miserable tones. "I think it's a good part of why he never went back to take Sako's head off properly."

"Okay, now I have to know," Ace said, unable to think of anything that would make the stoic, stern and unflappable Dracule Mihawk smile, let alone laugh.

* * *

Fox sighed, settling herself across Ace' lap and resting her head on his shoulder while in her mind Zoro settled on the edge of her senses, just close enough to hear her words through her ears but not so close he became influenced by her thoughts.

"I was fifteen when I arrived on Mystoria," Fox started, "and I had no personal experience of sex: lots of anecdotal stuff from being raised by pirates and merfolk, lots of second-hand knowledge from my nakama before they were murdered, but nothing of my own. I was barely thirteen when I was forced to eat Devil Fruit and learning to control it was a nightmare, both for me and the people around me. More accidental deaths than I like to think about." She cringed at the memories. "So by the time I was old enough to start being interested nobody dared come anywhere near me. Nobody touched me unless they had to and even then it was as quick and as fleeting as possible. Nobody was willing to even pat me on the shoulder or comfort me when I cried. I was a monster, a creature to be feared. Not even my shishou touched me more than was necessary to teach me, but I think that was just him being a difficult and angry old man." She paused. "The only people I touched were my patients, so they became my world. They were gladiators and all much older than me, so I was like a baby sister to them and they never saw me as anything else. I never saw them any other way either, but then they all died and I was alone, more alone than ever." She sighed.

"Anyway, I arrived on Mystoria on the brink of giving up and slitting my own throat and Sako took me in and cared for me. He was kind and sweet and I liked him, but I didn't love him. He didn't love me either, but he did care and he certainly thought I was pretty. So after my attempt to pay him back for his kindness –which escalated into my saving the entire island from famine and death– he offered to introduce me to what his people call 'the shared mysteries', which boil down to the various things people get up to in the bedroom. On Mystoria it is traditional for teens to be initiated in sex by someone slightly older but not yet married, so when I asked other women for advice they all told me to go for it." She smiled. "Sako was well-liked; very well liked actually."

"You have a soft spot for players," Ace muttered.

"I do not."

"Marco," Ace countered.

Fox paused. "I like him because he was kind to me as a child. His being a player has nothing to do with it." Marco hadn't been like some other men she'd met who acted nice so her aunties would think they were worthwhile people; he'd been genuinely kind and interested in her.

"Fine; you have a soft spot for people who sweet-talk you," Ace corrected himself.

"So says Mr. Suspicious," Fox muttered. "You think anyone trying to be kind to you has an agenda."

"Most people aren't nice to me unless they want something," Ace grumbled. "Even Pops wanted something. What happened next?"

Fox sighed. This next part was where it got cripplingly humiliating. "Well, Sako made good on his offer and we had sex," she said lowly, "but I'd never experienced anything remotely like it before and it affected my control of my Devil Fruit Ability. So when I opened my eyes after the first time I found myself sharing the bedroom with a ten-foot Sand Tiger Shark."

Ace gaped. "You, you turned your first lover into a frigging _shark?_" he demanded wildly. "During _sex?_ Seriously?!"

Fox bowed her head. "I destroyed one of the walls of his house and rushed him down to the bay before he suffocated but it was a near thing," she added miserably. "It took me a week to work out what I'd done and how to reverse it. Well, how to give him control over it; I couldn't reverse it fully but at least now he only turns into a shark when he wants to."

Ace stared at her incredulously for a full minute before starting to snicker.

"Yeah, laugh it up Hothead," Fox grumbled dully as in her head Zoro made his own amusement clear.

"It's just," Ace gasped unsteadily, "I think I got off easy. I may not be alone in my own mind but at least I'm still the right shape!"

Fox punched him in the arm. "Not. Funny," she hissed through gritted teeth as Zoro noticed her genuine hurt and tried –unsuccessfully– to smother his own mirth.

Ace stopped chuckling and looked thoughtful. "When you had your blow-up with your father you mentioned one night stands. Was what happened with Sako the reason you had them?"

Fox' mouth twitched in appreciation. "You know, my father never even considered that I might have had a reason for them," she said dryly, "he just killed them. But yes, that is why. I wanted to be able to control myself and control that ability, but wasn't inclined to practice on people I actually cared about. So one night stands it was. Once I'd worked out what I was doing and had a bit more experience learning control didn't take me very long."

"Did you turn any of them into things?" Ace just had to ask her that didn't he?

Fox glared. "Just the first one: I turned him into a tree. He didn't remember it afterwards."

Ace bent over and laughed until he cried while Fox just sat in his lap and sulked. It wasn't her fault! Stupid Devil Fruit and stupid unexpected side-effects! Secretly however she did have to admit that the story sounded much, much funnier than it had been to live through.

* * *

The other half of the story involving Sako. Funny to listen to, not so much to experience. Poor Fox-chan.


	86. Details

**Details**

"So," Ace asked when he'd wiped the tears from his eyes and calmed down enough not to snigger randomly at the mental images Fox' confession had dredged up, "How about you give me the rundown of some of the possible and likely side-effects of you bringing me back from the dead so I know what to expect?"

Fox huffed, still upset about having been laughed at, but grudgingly got out of bed and stomped across the room. "Fine," she grumbled, "but try not to freak out, okay? Remember it was this or being dead."

That really wasn't reassuring. When she returned to the bed and handed him a mirror, he wasn't quite sure what he was supposed to do with it.

"Look at yourself," Fox said with a sigh. "Nobody else has noticed yet, but they will soon."

Ace looked in the mirror. Yep, that was his face, same as it had always bee- wait. He turned his head this way and that, then brought the mirror closer.

"Is my hair blue?" he asked eventually, trying to catch how the light reflected off his head.

"Yes," Fox said simply. "Midnight blue, actually. I was expecting you to go blond but I must have missed some of the mermaid genetics; sorry about that. Your eyes are probably going to lighten as well."

Ace peered at his eyes, sliding out of bed so as to let his irises catch the light. As his pupils contracted he saw large flecks of amber amongst the black, flecks that hadn't been there last time he looked.

"Why would I suddenly have mermaid genes?" he asked carefully, putting the mirror down and leaning back against the cupboards.

"Did you ever meet your big sister's best friend?"

Ace frowned at the sudden change of subject. "Tempest? Just the once; why?"

"Tempest can't have children; she's also Whitebeard's eldest."

"Wait: Pops has kids? Actual blood family?" Ace demanded, shocked. "He never mentioned any!"

"He didn't know," Fox said calmly. "Didn't your sisters ever tell you about mermaid paternity taboos?"

"You mean the 'if he doesn't ask, he isn't interested' thing?" Ace asked, confused. "What does that –oh. He didn't know? But Pops has always wanted family more than anything!"

"He still didn't ask," Fox pointed out calmly. "Now, Tempest is just as family-orientated as her father, but she can't actually conceive, due to some unfortunate inheritance issues. So she likes to adopt. Not just informally like Whitebeard did with you all, but making her children her own flesh and blood."

"How?"

"Me," Fox admitted simply. "While there are a lot of very basic things I can't do, changing a person's entire genetic code is actually stupidly easy. Devil Fruit is weird that way. However as I refuse to do something so life-changing on a whim, Tempest generally adopts those of my patients who are so badly damaged I can't just put them back together without a little outside help."

"Huh?" Ace was confused. Fox sighed.

"I can mend damaged tissues Hothead, but I can't replace much missing tissue without overstraining my patient. You had a lot of missing tissue, including eight inches of backbone and spinal cord and your entire stomach. That last one was the critical factor, by the way: If you'd still had a stomach I could have woken you up and made you eat so as to replace the missing bits the normal way, but given there was nothing left of it at all I had to do things the hard way: I needed tissue grafts. Which is where Tempest comes in."

"Tissue grafts?" Ace repeated faintly.

"Like a blood transfusion, but of body parts," Fox said shortly. "I changed the genetic coding of the grafted tissue to make it closer to your own, then modified your own genetic coding to become closer to the changed grafts; six of one and half-a-dozen of the other, really. As Tempest is technically only half mermaid I tried to make sure you only got human genes but I must have missed some for you to have wound up with blue hair. Again, sorry about that."

"So who am I now?" Ace asked, feeling a bit lost.

"Well, as Tempest's human father was your Pops, I can say you are now more his son than ever before," Fox said dryly, "and your appearance will change to reflect that. You are probably going to get very, very large indeed."

* * *

Ace' eyes widened. "So I'm definitely not Roger's kid anymore?" he asked hopefully.

"Barely," Fox told him, amused by what he had latched on to; Ace had such serious daddy issues it wasn't funny. "More like a distant relation now."

Her best friend's smile could have lit up an entire island. "Yes!" He crowed happily, throwing up triumphant fists. "Take that, you bastards!"

"Of course, since the authorities think Portgas D. Ace is dead you really need a new name," Fox added, "and since apparently Spitfire broke taboo to get Whitebeard to acknowledge Tempest you could use his surname as her new half-brother. Don't ever think Spitfire's going to let you stop being _her_ baby brother though."

"So I could be Edward Ace?" Ace looked ecstatic; Fox decided he really should smile like that more often as it made him utterly irresistible.

"Edward D. Ace; you can't ever lose that D," Fox corrected him fondly, "and you need a new first name. Oh, and the tattoo on your arm would have to go."

Ace looked down at the tattoo with the crossed-out S. "Lose the tattoo? I, I can't," he admitted softly, his other hand covering it protectively.

"Why not?" Fox asked gently, walking over to lean against him.

"Luffy and I had another brother once," Ace said softly. "He died." His hand caressed the crossed-out S.

"You could create a new memorial," Fox suggested, "or take his name as your own."

Ace frowned. "Edward D. Sabo doesn't really work."

"Get a new tattoo then; something similar but different," Fox repeated. "Does your brother have a grave?"

Ace bowed his head. "No," he whispered hoarsely.

"Then we can peel off the tattoo, use it as a token and give him a real gravestone," Fox said kindly. "Would that be memorial enough?"

"A real grave? Somewhere I can visit?" Ace repeated, rubbing the tattoo. "I'd like that. So would Luffy." He paused. "You said I'm going to grow a lot, right?"

"Yes."

"My hat won't fit." It was such a silly thing to comment on, but Ace' petulant tones made Fox dissolve into giggles. Ace was nuts about that hat; it was currently sat in plain sight on the table at the other end of the cabin with Fox' belongings.

"N-no, Ace, it won't," she managed, leaning into him and shaking helplessly. "We could buy you a new, bigger one?"

"I'd like a top hat this time," Ace decided, caressing the tattoo again. "With goggles, of course."

"Like Vista has?" Fox asked.

"No: a different shape. And black, not blue," Ace said firmly. "I'll know it when I see it."

"What about the old one?" Ace loved that ridiculous orange cowboy hat dearly.

Ace frowned. "Everyone thinks I'm dead, right?"

"Yes. The Marines decided that having a hole burnt through you was fatal and Luffy's reaction when you stopped breathing was, well, hard to miss," Fox admitted. "I'm going to have to go and reassure him you're still alive once he wakes up."

"Wait, Luffy thinks I'm dead? Can I come and see him too?" Ace pleaded.

"No: you're still injured and while I know how he is I don't know where he is or who he's with other than Jinbe," Fox said firmly. "If you go there as Luffy's brother your survival might get back to the authorities and then you'll be more persecuted than ever. Remember that if you die now you might drag Zoro and me after you, not to mention the baby."

Ace scowled. "He's my _brother_. My _little_ brother."

"Write to him," Fox suggested. "I'll sort out a letter case for you and give it to Luffy when I check up on him."

Ace didn't stop scowling, but she could sense he was less upset than he had been. "Well, I thought that since I'm dead I should have a proper grave, right?" he muttered crossly. "So my old hat can go on it." He paused. "What happened to the tattoo on my back?"

"There's not much left of it," Fox admitted; "the ends of the crossed bones are all that survived. You can have it touched up once your skin is less tender and has healed fully, but until then you'll have to manage without."

Ace nodded quietly. He felt a bit odd to Fox, not exactly upset but definitely distant, like he was thinking too hard. Then his stomach rumbled.

"Is it dinnertime yet?" he asked hopefully, peering at her from under his eyelashes.

Fox grinned. "Even if it isn't I'm sure we can get something to eat. Besides, Tempest should be stopping by and we can ask her opinion on names. As your new big sister she should have a say."

Ace smiled. "I'd like that," he admitted quietly.

* * *

The Devil is in the details: Ace gets good news and bad news.


	87. Stumble

**Stumble **

The next week on the Red Force passed without much issue: Ace did very little other than eat phenomenal quantities of food –even by his standards– sleep and lie around on deck. His hair had gone a very distinctive shade of indigo and his eyes were now dark amber. He was also growing at an incredible rate: he was now a full foot taller than Fox, rapidly approaching Benn Beckman in height and was already broader through the shoulders than said grey-haired first mate. He had to move carefully as his ridiculous growth spurt made him so stupidly uncoordinated it was laughable; he was constantly misjudging his own height and bashing his head or tripping up. Marco thought it was hilarious and he wasn't the only one; Jozu had asked only the other day if Ace was trying to set a record for most injuries incurred on board ship outside of a fight.

Fox spent most of her time in his general vicinity, patching him up when he damaged himself, checking his injuries regularly and helping him get to grips with the changes. She didn't just hover though: she always had some other piece of work to hand, be it a shirt she was making, baby clothes she was knitting, mending she was helping with –everyone on board a ship had to be able to sew but Fox was neater and faster than most– or her log books she was writing in. She also taught him how to monitor the boundaries of his mind and recognise which thoughts were his and which had drifted in from elsewhere. Zoro was a great help too: he knew more about what it was like to adjust to suddenly having a mindscape and connections when your Devil Fruit didn't involve that kind of thing.

There was also a lot of difficulty with Ace' own Devil Fruit: Fox said it was the stress of his near-death experience that had twisted it, but the result was that the Logia was having to relearn control and experiment all over again. Fox had begged him not to try too much until they found a nice deserted island for him to raze to the bedrock, so Ace was sticking to little things.

He was playing around with his Hotarubi, making them dance in specific patterns, when a sudden alien feeling of profound grief exploded through his head, making him lose control. The little fireflies exploded into sparks and he heard a startled scream from the stairs and a thud. Scrambling to his feet Ace dashed over towards the source of the commotion: that had been Fox, who today was helping with the laundry. The grief was muted now, buried under the thick weight of frantic panic that was radiating from Zoro. Ace hadn't known the asura very long but he'd wandered into a few uneasy dreams involving Fox and staircases; apparently he'd lost his best friend as a kid after she fell down some. Hurrying to the top of the flight leading belowdecks Ace paused, looking down.

There was the basket of laundry, lying on its side and spilling wet clothes over the floor. There was Vista with his eyes bulging in shock. There was Fox, cradled in the arms of a shadowy six-armed demon that looked kinda familiar-

"Asura?" Ace blurted out in shock.

* * *

Fox had been carrying the basket of wet laundry up to the deck to be hung out to dry when Luffy had woken up all at once: he had been unconscious for so long she had 'tuned' her connection to him to be as sensitive as possible, but rather than coming to gradually he had exploded into awareness full of tearing grief. Fox had been so startled she'd missed her footing on the stairs and fallen backwards with a startled shriek. As she let go of the laundry basket, letting it slide past her, she'd sensed Zoro's utter horror at her accident and felt him roll across her mind like a tidal wave. There had been an instant of disorientation as he rushed _through_ her, then she'd come to her senses cradled in shadowy arms with a three-faced head gazing down at her in consternation.

"Asura?" came Ace' startled voice from the top of the stairs.

Fox glanced up as the shadow holding her shifted sideways so it could look both up and down the stairs with its lateral faces, the central head not taking its eyes off Fox as those of its hands not holding her up roamed over her legs, body and face, checking her for injuries.

"I'm unharmed," she said gently, raising a hand to caress its cheek; it felt solid. The look she got back expressed profound doubt. "Really," she insisted. "You can put me down."

The left-hand face scowled up the stairs at Ace, who was carefully making his way down towards them.

"Hey," the flame Logia protested, throwing up a hand, "don't you give me that look; I can't be everywhere."

The shift in the asura's stance indicated it felt Ace should at least _try._ Fox elbowed her rescuer gently.

"He's not well yet, or even fully himself," she pointed out. "Once he's got the hang of the changes he'll be much quicker on his feet."

The six-armed shadow reluctantly lowered her to her feet at the bottom of the staircase, then wrapped all his arms around her and kissed her fiercely before fading away to nothing. Ace whistled lowly.

"Overprotective much?"

Fox shrugged. "We all have our panic buttons, Kajin. Asura's just happen to involve girls falling down stairs."

"What _was_ that?" Vista asked, finding his voice. Fox then properly noticed their audience.

"That was her lover," Ace said dryly, stepping down to check Fox over for himself. "He's really kinda overprotective."

"I thought your lover was Roronoa Zoro?" Namur asked.

"That _was_ Zoro," Fox admitted; "when he's sufficiently serious to manifest his spirit, anyway. I wasn't expecting him to work out how to do that on demand yet, let alone remotely."

"You fell down the stairs," Ace pointed out blandly, "and I get the impression he learns best under pressure."

Fox chuckled. "Heh. True."

"That was Roronoa? The Pirate Hunter?" another pirate asked faintly. "That demon?"

"How did he just appear like that?" Vista asked.

"It's technically a spirit projection technique;" Fox explained, "a manifestation of his true nature. He projected it _through_ me and then used it to catch me before I hit the stairs. No bleed-over whatsoever, amazingly; he seems to have got the hang of how to coexist without overlap."

Vista whistled appreciatively. "That's a hard trick to master. I'll have to fight him sometime."

"I'm sure he'd be delighted," Fox said absently, more concerned right then with the distant dizzy feeling she was getting from Zoro and the excruciating grief still keening through her mind from Luffy. "Ace, help me will you?"

"Sure thing precious," Ace said nonchalantly, dropping to his knees to help her pick up the wet laundry. "What made you fall?"

"Luffy woke up," she said quietly, tossing the wet clothing into the basket as quickly as she could, "and he's mourning."

Ace' eyes widened. "That was Luffy? To hell with the washing, Limpet; go answer!" he shoved her up the stairs.

"But-"

Her best friend growled at her. "Look, I'll do it! You grab the letter I wrote and run!" He glanced over her clothing as she turned to leave: she was wearing an old pair of baggy shorts gathered below the knee that had probably belonged to Shanks once, had nothing on her upper half except a breast band and her feet were bare. "Grab a shirt as well!" he called after her as she vanished from sight around the corner.

"Will do!" drifted back before a door slammed. Ace set about loading up the laundry then carefully hefted the full basket onto his hip and cautiously made his way back up the stairs. He hoped his little brother would be okay soon. The howling grief echoing across from Fox' mind made his heart clench in guilt. If only he'd been more careful…

* * *

Life goes on and Luffy wakes up. Oh, and Fox gives Zoro the fright of his life.


	88. Weakness

**Weakness**

Luffy knelt on the ground in a clearing on the island of Amazon Lily, screaming in agony. Ace was dead. Ace was gone. Ace hadn't kept his promise.

Luffy hadn't been able to save Ace.

"I'm still so weak!" he wailed. "I can't protect a single thing!"

"Luffy-kun…" It was the fishman. Jinbe.

"Go away!" Luffy howled. "Leave me alone!"

"I'm afraid that will not be possible," Jinbe said flatly. "I cannot stand to see you injure yourself any further."

"It's my body! I can do what I like!" Luffy snarled.

"In that case, Ace-san's body too belonged to him alone. It was his own choice whether to live or to die."

"Shut up! You say another word and I'll punch your face in!"

"If that will help calm you please feel free;" Jinbe said sharply, "I too am wounded but I will not be defeated by you in this state!"

Luffy lunged for the fishman, but was thrown over onto the ground and sat upon. The rubberman then bit Jinbe, who grabbed him by the neck and slammed him into a rock, cracking it.

"Are you no longer able to see anything at all?!" Jinbe shouted at him. "That brimming confidence that led you to believe you could overcome any obstacle, your own great strength which you never doubted for an instant! The unsurpassable hordes of enemies who cruelly shattered those beliefs apart! Your brother who was always your guiding light upon these oceans! Certainly, you have lost much; you are allowing that mighty obstacle known as the world to block out your entire field of vision! At this rate you will lose sight of everything! You will be engulfed by clouds of self-condemnation and regret! It may be hard right now Luffy, but you must silence those thoughts!"

Luffy wanted to say something, anything, but the hand around his throat made it impossible.

"Stop counting only those things that you have lost!" Jinbe roared. "What is gone, is gone! So ask yourself this: what is there that still remains to you?"

Luffy stilled, staring. Jinbe let go of him, panting. Luffy sank to the ground, staring at his hands. Counting.

Zoro.

Nami.

Usopp.

Sanji.

Chopper.

Robin.

Franky.

Brook.

Fox.

Oh, no. Fox! Ace was her nakama too! Her best friend! How would she have felt to have Ace arrive in her arms already dead!

"I still have my friends!" he choked out. "And, and I need to talk to one of them right now!"

"Now?" Jinbe repeated. "But-"

"Fox!" Luffy howled. "Dracule Lisska! Lisskaaaaa!"

His throat tingled and he blindly threw himself forward into the arms of the figure that materialised in a flash of white in front of him.

"Fox!" he blubbered, clinging to her and sobbing into her shirt. "I'm sowwwwy! I tried really, really hard! Bu-bu-but I couldn't save Ace! Not even with your massive favour you gave me! I didn't use it properly! I feel useless! I wasn't strong enough!"

Fox wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly. "Shh, captain," she said soothingly. "Shh, it's alright."

"S'not," Luffy sniffled. "Ace's dead!"

"Your brother was just fine when I left him," were his assassin's soft words in his ear as she stroked his hair. "A bit unsteady on his feet perhaps, but not dead."

Luffy froze. Could it be..?

"He's… not?" the rubberman croaked disbelievingly, pulling back from her. "But… I saw…"

"What did I promise you, Captain?" Fox said gently. "What were your orders that you gave the person I sent to help you?"

"You, you promised to heal Ace after I rescued him," Luffy said, a spark of wild hope sparking in his heart, "and I told Ghost-guy not to let Ace die, no matter what-"

Fox smiled gently, tapping her right hand over her heart. "You are my captain, Monkey D. Luffy. I will always obey your orders so long as it is in my power to do so, and keeping your brother from death was not beyond me."

Luffy stared, transfixed by the firm, reassuring smile on his assassin's face. Then joy exploded within him and he jumped her, knocking her over backwards onto the ground and rolling her in the dust.

"He's alive! He's alive! Jinbe! My brother's ALIVE!" tears ran down his face in sheer relief and gratitude and he untangled himself from her and fell to his knees, banging his forehead on the ground.

"Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you, thank-you!" he chanted, before bouncing up and launching himself at her again and wrapping his rubber arms tightly around her body and burying his face in her shoulder.

Fox hugged him back this time, having kept her arms out of his grip. "It's okay to cry, Luffy," she whispered in his ear. "A strong man knows when to cry; there's no shame in it. Better to let it all out than to trap it inside to fester and rot."

Luffy sniffed, hiccupped and burst into noisy tears of relief as his assassin ruffled his hair with one hand and hugged him around the waist with the other, rocking gently back and forth as he howled.

* * *

Fox hugged her captain tightly, feeling bad about delaying her trip to visit him even by the amount of time it had taken her to find a clean shirt –Luffy would wake up on a laundry day– and a pair of shoes. She had no real idea who the shirt she was wearing belonged to; she had ended up rushing out of Shanks' cabin and grabbing the nearest dry one off the rigging before dashing inside again to grab the delivery case with the letter by Ace inside it. She knew she likely looked an untidy mess, but it didn't matter. What mattered was that her captain knew the truth now, and that even though he was bandaged from neck to ankle he was going to be okay.

Luffy's tears finally subsided into sporadic hiccups and he rubbed his nose on his bandages. "Is he really okay?" he sniffled in a small voice.

"He wanted to come along but I wouldn't let him," Fox said gently, "as he's not anywhere near properly healed yet, just like you aren't. He wrote you a letter though." She sighed. "Luffy, healing Ace cost me. Really cost both me and Zoro. It cost Ace a lot too, though he doesn't seem to mind that much."

"Cost? What kind of cost?" Luffy demanded.

"You remember how on Thriller Bark you found me and Zoro unconscious and it took us three days to wake up? And how we were different afterwards?"

Luffy frowned. "Yeah: you were like one person with two bodies. It was weird."

"Zoro died, Luffy," Fox said flatly. "I just refused to let him leave."

"Zoro's a zombie?!"

"No, Zoro is not a zombie! Zoro… he ran out of life-force, so his soul tried to leave his body; that's what happens when you die, you see," Fox explained patiently. "I caught his soul and stuffed it back into his body, then shared my life-force with him so he could heal. So our souls are stuck together now, which is why we sometimes act like a single entity." She paused. "Am I making sense?"

"Zoro got exhausted and died, but you reversed it!" Luffy determined. "Is that what you did for Ace?"

"Sort of; Ace had bits missing I had to replace as well, which took a lot of time. But the result is the same: Ace' soul is now stuck to mine and Zoro's."

"So you are all three going to be like one person in three bodies?"

Fox snorted. "That's one way of putting it," she conceded, "but here's another: to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part. Sound familiar?"

Luffy's eyes widened like saucers. "You're _married_ to Ace? Wait, you're married to Ace _and_ Zoro?!"

"Essentially," Fox confirmed, "and the crazy part: they're married to each-other as well."

Luffy clutched his head, eyes crossing. "Gah!"

Fox chuckled. "Quite; imagine how they feel about it."

Her captain stilled, looking up at her. "Is Zoro angry with me?"

A very pertinent question. "You are the captain; Zoro recognises this," Fox stated, prompted by the firm acceptance of her lover humming in the back of her mind. "Because you are the captain, you make the decisions. You ordered me to save Ace; because you ordered it, Zoro helped. We have no complaints."

Luffy didn't smile. "What about the baby?"

"The baby is fine, I think," Fox said, not as certain as she would like to be. There wasn't much she could do beyond monitor her pregnancy.

"Shouldn't you see a doctor?"

"Shanks' doctor doesn't know much about obstetrics; that's the fancy word for pregnancies, by the way Luffy," Fox added hastily in response to his confusion, "and I can't exactly have Shanks or Benn Beckman escort me into a doctor's surgery and ask for a checkup. Ideally I'd have a doctor on call until I give birth, but I'll manage without."

Luffy frowned. "Jinbe? Do you think the doctor guy who fixed me knows anything about pregnancies?"

"We can ask, Luffy-kun," Jinbe said. "I would be much happier if you at least let him look at you, Scamp."

"Scamp?" Luffy repeated, glancing from Jinbe to Fox and back again.

"You remember Jinbe is my uncle, Luffy?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, I was quite a naughty child," Fox confessed with aplomb, "and a rather wild teenager as well. Jinbe is my sensei as well as my uncle and he spent a lot of his time chasing after me and dragging me back to where I was supposed to be. So he calls me Scamp; I earned the epithet a hundred times over, I'm afraid."

"Shishishi! Really?" Luffy chuckled.

"She did indeed," Jinbe confirmed with a faint smile. "Now I am glad to hear Ace-san is still with us, but perhaps we should now return to the submarine and ask Trafalgar Law if he can examine her."

"Yeah!" Luffy agreed, pulling her to her feet and looking at her properly for the first time.

"Fox?" he asked, puzzled, tilting his head on one side.

"Yes?"

"Why are you wearing Shanks' trousers?"

Fox looked down at the old, battered, faded, many-times-mended pair of brown trousers buttoned partway down her calves. "It's laundry day, Luffy," she told him solemnly. "I didn't want to mess up my clothes so Shanks let me use these while I helped with the washing. He never wears them anymore anyway."

Luffy made a funny face. "Shanks was wearing those when I first met him."

"Really?" Fox hadn't known these old scruffs had a history. "I didn't know that."

"They look really strange on you," her captain said. "And whose shirt is that? It isn't yours; it doesn't fit properly."

Fox looked down at herself, taking in what she was actually wearing. It was a cheerful pink dress shirt. "This belongs to Marco," she said out loud, slightly surprised. "I didn't notice."

"Who's Marco?"

"He's a phoenix Zoan and a Whitebeard Pirate," Fox elaborated, not wanting to outright say that he'd been at Marineford. "He turns into a blue and yellow bird made of fire."

Luffy paused. "Hey, I saw him! He's cool; but why are you wearing his shirt?"

Fox scratched the back of her head, noticing as she did so that her hair was a total rats' nest from rolling around in the dust. "Well, I wasn't wearing a shirt to do the laundry and I felt you calling, so I grabbed the first dry shirt that I found," she admitted sheepishly.

"Oh." Explanation made, Luffy promptly lost interest. "Come on, the Doctor-guy is this way." He took her by the hand and led her off, Jinbe following behind them.

"You probably shouldn't tell people Ace is still alive," Fox said as they walked through the trees. "If the government found out they'd send people after him and he isn't anywhere near well yet."

"I'm a really bad liar," Luffy admitted candidly.

"Then say you don't want to talk about it when people ask you about Ace," Fox suggested. "Oh, and before I forget," she fished the letter case out of her waistband. "Your letter."

Luffy accepted it with trembling hands. "From Ace?" he whispered.

"Yes; it's one of my special letter cases, like Beastie is, so you can write back," Fox told him. Luffy stared at the flat tarred wooden case longingly, then shoved it through the waistband of his shorts.

"I'll read it while Doctor-guy is examining you," he said firmly, voice and legs both wobbling slightly. "I have to look after my crew!"

Fox kissed him on the cheek. "You're a wonderful captain, Luffy. Never believe otherwise."

* * *

Luffy finds out Ace isn't dead. He also finds out some other, more disturbing, things.


	89. Fencing

**Fencing **

Trafalgar Law sat on the rocky cliff near the wall edging the bay where his submarine was moored, turning Monkey D. Luffy's straw hat over in his hands. He had a great deal to think about, not all of directly connected to the grieving pirate who had stormed off into the trees, Jinbe at his heels. While Straw-Hat's connection to the Yonko Shanks was an interesting puzzle, it was not what his mind had returned to again and again over the past two weeks, starting even before the Marineford War.

Law was trying to pin down what had brought Straw-Hat Luffy to the attention of Pearl, the Dark King's daughter. He could see one thread and had made an educated guess at another following the announcement of Straw-Hat's parentage, but knew there had to be more than that. It wasn't the obvious connections the Surgeon of Death was looking for, but the little things. The little things were frequently more significant.

He also wanted to know more about Dracule Lisska, the pursuit of whom had been what brought the shimmering network of interpersonal connections he could barely perceive to his attention.

* * *

After the debacle at the Auction House, destroying the Bartholomew Kuma look-alike and escaping Admiral Kizaru, Trafalgar Law had indulged his curiosity and set about pursuing the interesting woman who had arrived with Straw-Hat Luffy. He knew very little about her, but quite enough for a good start: her name was Lisska, she had white hair, she had been acknowledged by 'Dark King' Silvers Rayleigh as his granddaughter through her mother, she knew the Straw-Hat Pirates very well, she had experience in flaying people and had some kind of Devil Fruit Power that enabled her to communicate at a distance. It was more than enough to find a person with on such a densely populated archipelago as Sabaody.

It took him less than a day to get a lead: Penguin came back only a few hours after leaving with news of a teahouse in grove twenty-two run by a lady called Pearl who had a daughter called Lisska. Dracule Lisska, as it happened. Law was even more curious now; while Lisska herself seemed to have vanished off the face of the earth, that her mother had somehow captured the interest of the Shichibukai Dracule Mihawk long enough for him to sire a child was noteworthy. More interesting was that this Pearl was certainly the daughter of the Dark King and so worth visiting. So he collected Bepo, Penguin, Shachi and the newly-freed Jean Bart and went to have a look for himself.

It turned out that the so-called 'teahouse' was in fact a complex worthy of being called a fortress, its true nature hidden under a layer of verandas, balconies and window boxes. Intrigued but now far more cautious, Law walked right up to the open gate and stepped inside, his crew trailing behind him. The Dark King had been a loner, but his daughter had fortified her position and likely had a very large crew backing her up.

"Welcome to the Blue Pearl teahouse," said a woman who approached him through the people milling around and streaming in and out of the building. "Are you here to dine, for tea, for entertainment or for conversation?"

Conversation? It had to be a euphemism of some kind. "It is lunchtime," Law noted, "so I think we will eat." It would be a good way to observe their surroundings.

The woman nodded, making a note before glancing up at him over her spectacles. "Will you be wanting to dine in the VIP room or in a private dining room?"

"What's the difference?"

"The VIP room has a separate kitchen and is popular with pirate crews who can afford the surcharge and want to eat without being gawked at by the general public," the woman said calmly. "There is also a wider range of dishes available."

"And the private dining room?"

"Again they have their own kitchens, but each has a smaller staff so there is a reduced range of meals and a longer wait for food. It is however totally private, accessible only to you and your guests with the option of private entertainment and conversation during or after the meal." It would also be much more expensive, Law deduced. However he liked the idea of privacy and an opportunity to ask questions.

"A private dining room please," he decided.

"Very good," the woman made another note. "Just for five, or are more people expected?"

"Just five," Law confirmed, amused that the woman who had obviously recognised him had yet to address him by name. Nor had she written his name on her notepad.

"Please step this way then sirs," the woman said, turning around and heading off through the crowd. Law followed barely a pace behind with his crew surrounding him, taking in his surroundings with interest. The construction was solid and on a massive scale, large enough even for giants to enter the central hall without bending over. However they were led down a side hall that was less high, but still massive enough than Jean Bart could have met himself coming the other way and still had room to stretch out his arms without touching hands.

"The public dining room is to your left," their guide said briskly, her shoes quiet on the wooden floor. "The tea rooms are in the opposite wing, so you will not see them. We serve traditional tea in the Wano style as well as afternoon tea and high tea. In addition to serving food we also offer private rooms for meetings or parties and rooms to rent for the night."

Law was positive they offered girls to rent for the night and other things as well, considering this was the lawless zone. Their guide was of average height with brown hair in a high ponytail and an oval face with large-lensed, circular spectacles with thin rims that made her eyes look larger. In conjunction with her sea green kimono and white apron, she looked fetching but not overly distracting. Law suspected she had door duty for that very reason.

The Heart Pirates were led around another corner and up a staircase, then around yet another corner before their guide handed them over to a much more striking young woman with pink hair wearing a peasant blouse and a short skirt. "Five for a private dining room," their guide said easily to the other girl, "they haven't decided one way or the other about extras yet."

"Very good then," the pink-haired woman said brightly, producing a key and briefly sticking her head into the room she was standing in front of. "Dining room for five!" she called out.

A lean blonde who moved like a martial artist emerged from the room, wearing a skimpy outfit that was nonetheless easy to fight in.

"Sirs, this is Amber who will be your waitress for the evening. Harassing the wait staff in this establishment will get you thrown out of the nearest window, so please don't." With that the pink-haired woman handed Amber the key and a clip board. "Enjoy your time here!"

Law blinked at the unusual addition to the introduction, but his smile didn't falter. Oh, this was going to be _fun._ This was definitely a place a pirate could appreciate. Feeling more interested than ever he followed the blonde in the ridiculous little pleated skirt down the hall and into the room she unlocked.

"Trafalgar Law, Captain of the Heart Pirates and crew," Amber said quietly once they were all inside the room. "Please be seated and I will fetch appetisers and drinks." She took the key away with her, but the door had a latch on the inside that could be pulled across to lock the door from the inside. Law sat down on the large, comfortable chair at the head of the table and looked around the room. It was large enough that the massive table did not restrict access around it, with five comfortable but solid chairs and two large windows on either side of a sliding door leading to a balcony in the wall opposite the door. The head of the table was at the side of the room to the right of the door, giving the person there a good view both out of the windows and down the hall whenever the door opened. A layout that appealed to his paranoia.

The door opened again and Amber returned with a large tray loaded with finger food, at her heels a girl of no more than eight carrying a tray with five glasses.

"Captain Law, this is Seras," Amber said as she deftly unloaded the food onto the table. "She will be assisting me." Seras carefully placed each glass by each pirate, biting her lip in concentration.

"What would you and your crew like to drink, captain?" the little girl recited, looking him in the eye with her hands clasped over her apron. Law smiled a little wider.

"What do you have?"

The little girl straightened her spine. "We have beer, ale, cider, huangjiu, mead, palm wine, sake, red and white wine, fortified wines and a wide range of spirits," she said decisively. "Is there anything in particular you would prefer, or do you simply want something that will complement the food?"

Law glanced at his crew, who seemed more boggled by the selection than anything else. "Palm wine for now," he decided, "and sake with the meal." Palm wine was a terribly finicky beverage to make as it had to be served on the day it was brewed, so he hadn't had any in months.

"Very well captain," the diminutive waitress said brightly, hurrying out of the room with her tray clasped to her chest. Amber remained.

"Now captain if there are any questions you would like to ask regarding the extras on offer I would be happy to answer them," she said, pushing the door closed behind her.

Law turned his seat so he could look directly at the waitress he could tell was a highly capable fighter.

"At the door we were offered entertainment or conversation," he said, lacing his fingers together. "What does each of those offers entail?"

"Entertainment covers everything from music while you eat to a pretty woman and a private room afterwards and practically everything in between," Amber said bluntly. "This is a traditional teahouse, so we have geisha for the more classically minded as well as the pretty faces and exotic dancers."

"And the conversation?"

Amber actually smiled; the expression was sly and teasing. "This is Sabaody, the pinch-point of the Grand Line. Everything headed into Paradise or the New World passes through here but some people keep a closer eye on what moves than others and all people talk. Here is where the talking happens. Any particular conversation you had in mind, Trafalgar Law, Surgeon of Death?"

Law grinned. He had stumbled upon an information market! How fortuitous. "I met Silvers Rayleigh at the Auction house and a woman called Lisska that he acknowledged as his granddaughter," he said boldly. "I'm interested in her and her connection to the Straw-Hat Pirates."

Amber looked at him, really looked at him and in that instant Law caught a glimpse of a sharp mind and the possibility of a really _good_ fight.

"Conversation then," she said blandly. "I'm sure madam Pearl will be able to make time for such a polite and well-informed pirate." She turned and opened the door for the returning Seras. "Now that has been established is there anything particular you would like to eat?"

* * *

I didn't expect this chapter at all, but Law wanted to share what he'd been up to, so: flashback!


	90. Conversation

**Conversation **

Madam Pearl arrived with the food, tall, blue-haired and sumptuously dressed, followed by a lean young man carrying a folding stool. Law politely rose, quietly taking note that their host was definitely a mermaid; there were a number of minor but distinctive medical differences even if you couldn't see the tail. On Sabaody, where slavery was rampant and mermaids were a good way to make a fortune, that was a serious risk to be taking.

"A gentleman!" Pearl exclaimed with a coy smile. "Such a rare quality in a pirate; do sit down, Trafalgar-san; I wouldn't dream of interrupting your meal." Her assistant unfolded the stool for her to sit on then left the room, closing the door behind him.

"Silvers Pearl, I presume," Law drawled, taking a sip of the sake. It was very good.

The woman smiled. "So well-informed too! I like you, Law-san; do call me by my given name."

"Pearl-ya," Law conceded. "How is it that a mermaid comes to live and work openly in the lawless zone, so close to the slave trade?"

Pearl chuckled, resting her cheek on her hand. "My dear Surgeon of Death, I firmly believe that a lady's home is her castle and no slaver has ever darkened my door more than once; they certainly never leave." She glanced at him from under her lashes. "Of course what happens outside my domain is beyond my control, but those within it are mine to protect and command; I'm sure you understand."

Law understood alright: the Blue Pearl teahouse was a kingdom within a kingdom, a pirate ship without a keel or sail with this lady as its captain. "You run a very tight ship," he commented.

"You liked my girls," Pearl noted with distinct approval. "I pick the ones who work out front for their brains, you know; the charming airheads are all very well but they take a lot of looking after, so I keep then in-house."

"Amber seems the more physical type," Law noted.

"Amber-chan?" Pearl repeated disingenuously. "She was a dancer before she was a waitress, true, but she is a very capable child; very diplomatic."

Law suspected that half that diplomacy came from the amount of bare skin on display and the other half from her evident combat ability, but said nothing. That wasn't the direction he wanted to steer the conversation in. "I met your daughter in town the other day, Pearl-ya," he said easily. "Dracule Lisska, I believe her name is. My height with white hair and attached to the Straw-Hat Pirates?"

"So you met my baby, did you?" Pearl teased. "And now you're asking after her. Is Law-san in love?"

"I am interested in a woman who thinks nothing of flaying and who can speak to people in their minds," Law responded, not rising to the bait. "And I find it strange that I've never heard of her before. Does she never leave the archipelago?"

Pearl chuckled. "She's almost never here, Law-san, she travels so much. But my daughter is usually the very soul of discretion so it is unsurprising that one so new to the Grand Line is unfamiliar with her. And she thinks nothing of flaying those who bear the Hoof of the Dragon because she believes that we are all equal before god, nobility be damned." The Dark King's daughter smiled widely, the expression so like her father's in its mocking glee it nearly made Law flinch. "There are no slaves in my care and never will be; just as I will not bow to anyone save of my own free will within my own home."

"Do you not get Tenryuubito as guests?" The food was certainly good enough.

Pearl raised an eyebrow. "My establishment is insufficiently high-class to attract that kind of customer, Law-san."

Law smirked; he guessed that any World Nobles who visited found plain waitresses, poor service and bland food. Sneaky.

"As for my dear daughter," Pearl sighed, "she has gone and fallen for a most unsuitable swordsman. However he at least seems to return her interest, so I am prepared to give him a chance. What she sees in him I do not understand when she knows so many more experienced men."

"Would that swordsman be the Pirate Hunter?" Law guessed, remembering Lisska's arrival at the Auction House.

"Yes, it would," Pearl sighed moodily, raising a hand absently towards her hair and distracting Shachi into spilling his drink down his front. "So many strong, capable men out there who worship the ground she walks on and she throws herself away on a lone swordsman with a grand ambition. Tsk." She played with her fan. "I hoped she had learnt from my mistakes, but it seems not."

"Dracule Mihawk?" Law guessed, not sure why this woman was sharing so much so freely but willing to take advantage.

Pearl fanned herself. "He was such a bad boy back then," she said wistfully, "but he loved to fight more than he ever cared for me. If it weren't for Lisska-chan I'd never have seen him again after our fling came to an end. He certainly doesn't _love_ me, but I don't much care for him either anymore so it balances out." She frowned. "Law-san, do try not to harass my daughter to the point she feels the need to tell her father about it; he takes her wellbeing very seriously. Too seriously; murdering her former conquests was a little over the top."

Law blinked. Hawk-Eyes had killed off all his daughter's exes? Perhaps Roronoa wouldn't be around much longer after all. "That does seem… excessive," he agreed, adding this new variable to his plans for the future. If this Lisska was the lever that could move the solitary, unpredictable Hawk-Eye Mihawk then she was worth keeping track of and possibly making an alliance with.

"It was; if she'd wanted them dead she would have done it herself," Pearl said matter-of-factly. "Lisska-chan is self-sufficient like that."

"What does she do for a living?"

"My baby is a Pose Artificer," Pearl said proudly. "The Marines pay her very well for her work and she sells to the private market as well. Having a Government contract provides her with all kinds of advantages, as you can imagine." She glanced at Law again, meeting his eyes with a disconcertingly shrewd expression.

Law could see the advantages of such an arrangement; no doubt Lisska filled her mother in on all kinds of things she picked up from the Marines and being an Artificer meant she could travel constantly to all kinds of unusual places without it being questioned; truly an information goldmine. It also meant Lisska could get into places and meet people that were not usually accessible to the common man, let alone a pirate or the child of a pirate. "She must meet a lot of interesting people," he murmured, lifting his glass to his lips again.

"Vice-Admiral Garp is always very kind," Pearl confirmed sweetly. Law choked on his drink.

* * *

Law turned the hat over again, still thinking deeply. Pearl had talked a lot, but very little of what she had said was actually useful. Helpful, but not useful. More disconcerting had been her final comment when he paid the bill and left.

"When you see my daughter, give her a kiss from me," Pearl had added as he walked out the door. He'd looked back to ask why she thought he'd be going anywhere near the younger woman any time soon and had been silenced by the cool, shrewd look on the mermaid's face. It had made him feel like he had suddenly woken up on the operating table to find her riffling through his organs.

Since Marineford Law had guessed that Pearl had connections to the Revolution and Monkey D. Dragon, which might explain why she had so deftly and easily steered the conversation away from Straw-Hat he hadn't even noticed until several days later. Her daughter's interest in Roronoa was the obvious connection but even that didn't make sense. She wasn't part of the crew, just a tag-along with a romantic attachment to the Pirate Hunter. So why…

A loud roar and violent splashing out to sea distracted him from his thoughts and Penguin used the binoculars to take a closer look. It was apparently a dead Sea King.

"It's dead! Something just killed that thing!" Penguin shouted.

"A monster of that size?!" Shachi asked.

"I couldn't see what it was fighting," Penguin admitted. "This is one terrifying ocean."

A splash down by the submarine caught Law's attention and he saw a man climbing up onto the rocks. That was odd.

"Hey! Who are you?!" Shachi called out.

"Dear me," said a familiar voice as the man looked up and Law recognised him. "Ah, I know you people: we met at the Sabaody Archipelago."

Silvers Rayleigh, the Dark King himself. How unexpected.

"Well you see," the aging pirate went on, "I ran into a nasty storm out at sea. My boat sank, so I had to swim the rest of the way. My body really doesn't move the way it used to; I really am getting old."

"A storm?" Penguin yelled, sounding slightly hysterical. "There are no storms in the Calm Belt! Which means your boat sank outside the Calm Belt and you actually swam all this way?!" he paused, possibly for breath. "Then, the one who was fighting that Sea King, was that you as well?!"

"Hm, now then," the Dark King said, wringing out his jacket and putting it on, "I'm guessing that Luffy-kun is somewhere to be found on this island?"

Another connection. What a surprise.

"Old man Rayleigh!" came a familiar voice from the forest behind him. Law turned to see Straw-Hat being carried by Jinbe and accompanied by a scruffily dressed woman. One of the locals?

"Lisska! What on earth are you doing here, my girl?" the Dark King boomed. "I thought you were in the New World!"

Apparently not. Law frowned; where on earth had she come from? And, more to the point, how had she gotten here?

* * *

Pearl plays with Law, but he is at least aware enough to realise he's being played.


	91. Examination

**Examination **

Luffy had been surprised to see Old Man Rayleigh, but he quickly turned his attention to Doctor-guy as he slid off Jinbe's back and grabbed Fox by the hand.

"Doctor-guy, can you give my assassin an examination? She's pregnant," he said matter-of-factly, leading Fox forwards.

"You know, I rather hoped you would manage not to emulate your mother like this," Rayleigh commented, shaking his head.

The doctor rose to his feet, Luffy's hat hanging from one hand. "Dracule Lisska, daughter of Dracule Mihawk and Pearl, daughter of Silvers Rayleigh, and also known as 'Angel of Death' Fox," he said coolly. "What a surprise."

Luffy stumbled slightly at the Doctor-guy having guessed Fox' secret, but the assassin just chuckled.

"You've been talking to my mother, Trafalgar Law," she said sweetly, "I see her fingerprints all over you."

Law frowned. "I can give you an examination," he said shortly, "but it will have to be on board my submarine."

Fox let go of Luffy's hand and gestured to the Doctor-guy. "Please, lead the way Doctor Law."

The Doctor chucked the straw hat at the rubberman then turned around and led the way down the steep slope to the shore, Fox right behind him. Luffy caught his hat and set it on his head, relieved it hadn't got lost.

"Ah, Luffy-kun," Old Man Rayleigh said, turning his attention away from his granddaughter. "It's good to see you again."

"What are you doing all the way out here?" Luffy blurted out. "I was just about to head back out to the Sabaody Archipelago by following the Vivre Card! Where are the others?"

Old Man Rayleigh chuckled. "Well I doubt they have all been reunited just yet; I left my own Vivre Card with Shakky. I could hardly move around freely otherwise, you see."

"Dark King Rayleigh; are you truly him? I am astonished," Jinbe said shakily. "And Pearl is your daughter? I'd never have guessed."

"Jinbe; thank-you for taking such good care of my granddaughter over the years," Old Man Rayleigh said. "Now how did she get here, do you know?"

"I called her," Luffy said, fidgeting. He didn't like waiting and he didn't like not being able to keep an eye on Fox. He knew he couldn't watch the examination as that was private but he was still worried. She was sort-of married to his big brother now which meant he had to look after her more than he had before with her just as his assassin. Of course she was sort-of married to Zoro too, and Zoro would be very angry if she or the baby got hurt when Luffy could have done something about it.

Luffy tried not to think about Zoro and Ace being sort-of married to each-other. It didn't make any sense so he was going to ignore it.

* * *

Law led the way down into his ship towards the main theatre, his mind buzzing with questions. His main question was how on earth Pearl had known he would meet up with her daughter several days before he even decided to watch what happened at Marineford, let alone help Straw-Hat. Behind him Dracule Lisska –Angel of Death Fox– strode gracefully, her hair full of leaf litter and wearing poorly fitting men's clothing. She looked nothing like as elegant as she had on Sabaody and nothing at all like her bounty poster; Law suspected that was deliberate. On the one hand, there was the law-abiding Pose Artificer with a Government contract, on the other an apparently unbalanced killer with a history of massacres whom Straw-Hat called _his_ assassin. What kind of person was Monkey D. Luffy to not only have an assassin as part of his crew but openly acknowledge her as such? Was it sheer confidence? Most of what Straw-Hat did seemed to be.

He opened the door to the theatre and gestured. "Do come in, Miss Angel of Death."

She stepped past him and sat down on the operating table. "Please call me Fox; it is who I am," she said politely, "and feel free to ask the questions meeting my mother has planted in your mind."

"Fox-ya," Law conceded, closing the door. "Please take your shirt off."

The woman did so, revealing a bandage breast band. "I was doing the laundry," she said as she folded the shirt in her lap, "and wasn't expecting to be called away."

"_Where_ were you doing the laundry?" Law asked, pulling on a pair of gloves and moving closer.

Fox smiled. "Nowhere near here," she admitted candidly, "But my captain called me so I had to answer."

"Arm," Law said shortly, reaching for the equipment to check her blood pressure. Fox obliged. "How long ago did you conceive?"

"About two weeks before the Straw-Hats first arrived in Sabaody, so a bit over five weeks ago," she calculated. "I've been eating appropriately."

"Define appropriately."

"My mother gave me very specific advice on what and how much I should be eating while pregnant when I saw her shortly before we wound up in the Auction House," Fox explained, "and before that I was eating as healthily as it is possible to on board a ship. Sanji takes food very seriously."

"Hm," Law acknowledged as he checked her blood pressure. "You are a quarter mermaid, yes?"

"Something close to that; I've never checked precisely."

"It will affect how I judge the outcome of the examination," Law explained, removing the cuff and noting down the results. "Mermaid biology is similar but there are certain distinct differences. How well do you manage at deep-sea pressures?"

"Without difficulty; I can also breathe underwater and before I ate Devil Fruit I was fast enough a swimmer to outpace a fishman," his patient told him.

"Why did you eat Devil Fruit and what type?"

Fox glanced up at him. "Is the former relevant?"

"No." Law still wanted to know though.

"I was forced to eat Devil Fruit; it was the Mei-Mei no Mi."

Law nearly fumbled his notes, but directed her towards the scales. "Logia, correct?"

"Indeed." Fox smiled serenely at him. "Tell anyone and both you and they will have an unfortunately fatal accident. I like being underestimated."

"I've never heard of a Logia successfully making it through a pregnancy before, but that may simply be due to their rarity and the fact that most pirates and Marines are men," Law mused, accepting the threat's validity. "That you ate the Life-Life Fruit may actually help keep the embryo alive." He paused. "Have you been using it on the baby?"

"I've been monitoring it through my body's systems but not otherwise," Fox said. "I didn't want to accidentally accelerate its development or damage it."

"Very wise," Law muttered, taking note of her weight and height. "Do you know where I can get hold of your medical history?"

"My mother's doctor has my recent medical history; from when I was fifteen to the present day," Fox told him. "There isn't anything between nine and fifteen, which includes the time I ate Devil Fruit, but before then is also recorded by mother's doctor. Before I was four will be sporadic and unreliable though as I lived with my father."

Law translated that as 'constantly on the move'. "You're Grand Line born I take it, Fox-ya?"

"Yes. Fishman Island has my birth certificate."

Not surprising considering Pearl was a mermaid. Law made another note. "Who is your mother's doctor?"

"His name is Kajiki, but you'll only get the records by getting in touch with my mother and asking nicely for them," Fox explained. "Kaj is one of her dependants."

So he was either a merman or a fishman living under her protection rather than on Fishman Island. Smart lady for having a doctor permanently at hand when she had such a large community depending on her.

"I'd like a blood sample," he said, reaching for a syringe.

"So long as only my given name appears in your records," Fox said evenly.

"Fine; Dracule Lisska, no added epithets," Law agreed easily. Fox sat back down on the table and kept her eyes on his hands rather than the needle or his face.

"So, assassin?" he asked as the little vials filled.

"I'm told I'm very good," Fox said unhelpfully.

"I've never heard of you."

"Proof enough," Fox said lightly. "Anonymity is an assassin's greatest asset."

"You captain told me," Law pointed out.

"He's my captain." That meant far more when she said it than when he'd ever heard similar statements from other pirates.

"What does his being your captain mean to you?" he asked as he removed the needle from her arm, gave her a cotton bud and set the vials aside. She waved away the cotton bud and the wound closed smoothly. Regeneration; very interesting.

"He gives the orders and I obey them." Again, a loaded statement.

"No matter what?"

"He's a good captain." So much she wasn't saying that was nonetheless perfectly clear. Fox really would follow _any_ order her captain gave her, yet trusted Straw-Hat _not_ to order her to do anything she couldn't –or wouldn't– do.

"The next few examinations are rather invasive," Law said bluntly. "Take off the rest of your clothes please."

* * *

After the pelvic exam Law let her get dressed again while he got the ultrasound working. "You can't just have one check-up, you know," he pointed out. "Ideally you need monthly ones until the end of the second trimester, fortnightly ones for the following two months then weekly until birth."

"My situation is far from ideal," his patient drawled from behind him as she pulled her trousers back on, "and I can monitor the baby's health much better than most mothers; I've monitored pregnancies before so I know what to expect."

Law really wanted to have an in-depth medical discussion about what exactly her Devil Fruit Ability enabled her to do, but recognised this wasn't the time. "Sit," he said shortly, bringing the machine forward. She sat, not bothering to put her shirt back on. Law spread the gel over her lower abdomen, then placed the transducer, his focus on the screen. He hadn't actually done this since he was in training, which had been a good many years ago. Piracy meant he got a lot more trauma patients than any other kind and pregnant woman tended to run away rather than ask for assistance.

"And there it is," he muttered, spotting the half-inch long embryo on the screen. "Can't distinguish gender yet though; too early." He moved the transducer slightly to get a better picture. "You are indeed in embryonic age week six, so gestational week eight. Birth is generally in week forty, so thirty-two weeks away; slightly less than eight months." He set the machine aside and handed her a wipe for her abdomen. "That's everything; you are in excellent health from what I can see and there doesn't seem to be anything wrong at this stage. The blood test will take time but considering your Devil Fruit I doubt I'll find anything amiss."

"Thank-you Doctor Law," Fox said, wiping herself down and shrugging the shirt over her shoulders before walking towards the door. Law hesitated.

"Come back," he said.

Fox turned around, her hand on the door handle. "Pardon?"

Law watched her from the corner of his eye. "I have no idea how you got here Fox-ya but I suspect you can teleport or some such to come when you captain called for you. Come back on board my ship in a month's time and I'll give you your next check-up."

"What will it cost me, Doctor Law?" Fox asked, moving back into the room with a deceptively gentle gait. She moved like a person who killed with her hands; considering the details on her bounty poster, she probably could.

"I want to know what your Devil Fruit can do," he said frankly, "and I'd like some more questions answered."

"Questions?" She was within arm's length now. Far too close when she was acting like the assassin her captain had introduced her as.

"Why did you say you could see your mother's fingerprints all over me?" He hadn't meant to ask, but it still came out.

Fox stepped back, just out of reach. "Know anything about Haki?"

"Haki?"

Fox looked him in the eye, unexpectedly serious. "Find out. Learn. Work hard, because in the New Word your life _will_ depend upon it. My mother is an absolute savant with Haki so she sees more than most, but I can see enough to know you've met her recently and that she upset you."

Law sensed he'd been handed for free something a lot of pirates died before even learning existed. "She knew I'd meet you," he said quietly, "told me so nearly three weeks ago."

"That sounds like mother," Fox sighed. "Did she give you a message? She does that whenever she sees someone is going to meet me. I've been stopped by all sorts of people. Frequently Marines; you haven't lived until you get accosted in the street by an Admiral who informs you that your mother wants you to stop by for tea in ten days' time at four o'clock."

Law blinked. That… made things less bad, actually. "She told me to kiss you," he said bluntly.

Fox cocked her head on one side. "You'd better do it then," she said pragmatically. "She'll know if you don't and it's a test."

"Test?" Law had an idea, but confirmation would be helpful.

"She wants to see if you can be trusted. You know what she does for a living, yes?"

"Information?" It certainly wasn't the madam she looked and acted like; well not entirely.

Fox smiled. "Indeed. Trustworthiness and reliability are very important in the information trade. This is a small thing, a trivial thing, but if you don't do it she'll make rude comments about your unreliability next time you want something or insinuate unpleasant things about your masculinity or lack thereof for not being willing to kiss a pretty girl. Better just to go with the flow and avoid all the hassle."

Law pondered Fox' words, considering what he had learned of her mother from talking to her over lunch. Pearl did seem the type to make everything into a test, constantly assessing the value and reliability of the people around her. He knew he did it to a certain extent, but the Dark King's daughter apparently took it to greater extremes.

"We call her the Storm, you know," Fox said idly, tossing a scalpel around with familiar ease, "because she's rather like a really nasty Grand Line cyclone."

Dangerous, unpredictable and takes you completely by surprise. Oh, yes. Law could see it. Walking over he took the scalpel away from Fox and pecked her on the cheek. "There. Now get out and don't come back for a month."

Fox reached up and tapped him on the nose with a glowing finger, making him sneeze. "There, now I can find you," she said brightly, then legged it out of the theatre at a run.

Law wondered what on earth he was doing offering to help Fox, but decided the inconvenience was worth it to get an in on Madam Storm's information network. Knowledge was power after all.

* * *

A bit of Luffy and a lot of Law, who has somehow wrangled his way into being Fox' doctor for the next eight months. How did that happen?


	92. Identity

**Identity **

As he hung out the washing on the rigging Ace did his best to eavesdrop on what Fox was doing. It was nowhere near as easy as it sounded: it felt like mentally sidling up to the connection and partly sliding through it, while still balancing enough of himself on the his own side not to fall through completely. Or fall over. Or stop hanging up the clothes. So yeah, not easy. He couldn't even ask Zoro for help because the asura had overdone it rescuing Fox from falling down the stairs and was, so far as Ace could tell, having trouble even walking in a straight line.

He relaxed and backed off a bit when the grief faded into disbelief and then joy before vanishing completely; Fox had probably shut the connection. Reassured that his little brother was going to be okay, Ace went back to hanging out the laundry properly. Unfortunately mindless, menial tasks where what helped him to think and there were a lot of things on his mind. Most importantly, who was he now?

He knew from Garp that 'Ace' had been what his father had wanted him to be called, which was a big part of why he'd taken his mother's surname on top of how she'd saved his life and died for him. So if Roger wasn't even his father by blood anymore, did he have any right to call himself that? Absently he rubbed the spot on his upper arm where his 'ASCE' tattoo had been; Fox had peeled it off a week ago before his growth spurt could deform it any further. She'd also removed all that remained of the crossed bones on his back as they were distorting and stretching. He felt very naked without the tattoos. This morning he had been forced to take his beads off as well as they were more like a choker than a necklace and when he'd looked in the mirror he'd seen a stranger looking back. A vaguely familiar stranger, but still a stranger. He'd piled the beads on top of his hat and the knife one of his big sister's apprentices had brought by –apparently she'd stopped by Impel Down and stolen his effects while the Marines weren't paying attention– and tried not to look at them.

"Ace?"

Ace looked down and realised he'd finished hanging up the washing. "What is it Marco?"

"Are you alright, yoi?" It was weird to have Marco looking _up_ at him. The flame Logia sat down heavily and fisted his hands in his hair.

"Who am I Marco?"

"You're our Ace, our brother and a Whitebeard Pirate, yoi," Marco said promptly.

"Am I?" Ace asked morosely. "Ace was what my former father wanted me to be called and I don't share any blood with him at all now. I don't have Pops' mark on my back anymore either."

"You're still our brother," Marco said firmly, "no matter what you end up calling yourself. You're Pops' blood now and he would be delighted to know how things turned out, yoi."

"I'm still Luffy's brother too," Ace reminded himself out loud. "I'm also Fox'… well whatever I am to her. Oh, and Zoro, too. That's still so weird to try and articulate. Spitfire's not going to let me get away either, or any of the others."

"Yes, tell me about your big sisters," Marco said teasingly, "the ones you never thought to mention, yoi."

Marco had met Spitfire before; she'd boarded the Moby Dick once, shortly after he'd joined, and demanded to know where they'd hidden her baby brother. Whitebeard had been greatly amused. Ace had been less so, but he's secretly loved the way she'd asked him all those concerned questions and then threatened Pops with grievous bodily harm if he didn't look after _her_ little brother properly. He'd never been the younger brother before and it had been embarrassing but still nice. That Spitfire still kinda reminded him of an older, smarter female version of Luffy was a bit strange, but it made her easy to understand. Then she'd introduced the Whitebeard Pirates to Runt, which had inspired a stunned moment of 'Oh-My-God-_It's_-_**Too**__-__**Big**_**!**' and casually mentioned she'd been fully prepared to sink the Moby Dick if it turned out they'd been keeping Ace prisoner. Whitebeard had found her utter confidence in herself amusing, but Ace had noticed that Marco had been more than just a bit wary at being threatened by a massive mermaid who commanded a Sea King as large as a good-sized island. He'd been bombarded with questions afterwards, but he'd snarled or thrown fire at most of the askers and all Thatch had got out of him was, "She's my half-sister, okay? I only met her recently" which had been deemed answer enough for the Forth Division Commander to take action and get the questioners to back off.

"I don't talk about then because they've got families, Marco," he grumbled quietly. "Families and kids; little kids some of them." Ace was paranoid about keeping his nieces and nephews safe despite never having met most of them. He'd had a shitty upbringing really, though he was grateful to Dadan for what she'd done for him, and he never wanted any of his relatives to go through that.

"You've got nieces and nephews, yoi?" Marco asked, looking rather surprised.

"I don't know if Spitfire's got kids –she's never mentioned any– but Ama's got two girls and Seishelle's got a toddler," Ace admitted quietly, making sure there was nobody else within hearing.

"Seishelle? Crown Princess Seishelle on Fishman, yoi?" Marco said, raising a startled eyebrow. "Well I understand why you never said anything; potential for all kinds of nastiness there."

Oh yes. A daughter of the Pirate King eventually becoming queen of an actual island by marrying into the succession? The World Government would have kittens.

"Not to mention my two fully human siblings, neither of whom has any greater ambition than running a good bar or raising a large family," Ace went on angrily, wisps of greenish fire dancing over his hands. "The Government would _destroy_ them for no better reason than their mothers spent the night with the wrong pirate and got left a souvenir. Bastard Marines."

"Hey, calm down," Marco said, "Don't set the ship on fire, yoi."

Ace looked down and saw his legs were starting to scorch the deck. "Oops," he said guiltily, bringing the fire under control again. He couldn't really extinguish it anymore, just crush it down inside so it didn't dance over his skin. Sometimes he suspected that since being brought back his body thought it was fire that had somehow become a human being rather than the other way around.

"That's another thing," he went on gloomily. "I feel like I've got a whole different Devil Fruit now; it's nothing like it used to be. Hell, I don't think anybody would believe them if I told them I was Ace. I'm eighteen inches taller than I was at Marineford, my hair's gone blue, my eyes have changed, my body's changing shape and my face isn't quite the same either! I don't even have my tattoos! Most of my brothers still think I'm dead and if they saw me now they'd think I was part of Shanks' crew."

Marco studied him more closely. "You do seem to be getting Pops' nose," he agreed. "And you're right; a lot of them won't recognise you. Certainly none of the allies; the people who know you better will though, given time, yoi."

Ace hung his head. "I'm not sure I even want to give them time, Marco," he whispered. "I, I don't feel the same and I know I'm not going to be able to fight for months while I get used to the changes and get back in shape. I think Portgas D. Ace is going to have to stay dead."

"What, yoi?" Marco sounded more dangerous than surprised.

"Hear me out, okay? I look different, I sound different, I move differently and even my Devil Fruit reacts differently. I'm different down to my bones, Marco! My damn blood type changed! I'm not who I was and I want, no I _need_ time to find out who I am now. Other than Pops' kid and Luffy's brother." He ran a hand over his face. "Please Marco? Let me give who I was a proper funeral. I don't want to come back and have everyone going on about me being the son of the Pirate King when I'm really, really not."

"So long as you promise to actually come back, yoi," Marco said evenly.

"Like I'd abandon my family," Ace grumbled, glaring at him. He was going to say something else when an odd sense of trepidation danced across his connection to Fox. The flame Logia's eyes went blank as he focussed inwards, seeking what had disconcerted her. She was with Luffy, who had just…

He blinked. Did Fox not like doctors? He hadn't known that. No, it wasn't dislike: she was wary of doctors, like a person who's been savaged by a dog might be wary of all dogs thereafter. Fox _knew_ that doctors could inflict terrible pain and suffering just as easily as they could offer relief and healing.

"You in there, yoi?"

Ace surfaced, frowning. "Yeah. I just found out something I wasn't expecting, that's all."

"Is Fox alright, yoi?" Marco asked.

"Yeah, she's fine; I just found out why she's been distracting us every time we try to bring up the subject of getting a doctor to examine her properly." Ace glanced over to meet his brother's eyes. "Turns out she's had some bad experiences; she's reacting like being a doctor is similar to being an assassin and instinctively treats them the same. She's meeting a doctor now and she's doing that incredibly strange to watch thing where she respects them, doesn't really want to be in arms' reach –but will because that would be showing weakness– and messes with their head a bit just to see if they can catch her doing it, in between being actually friendly and helpful. Kinda like her version of me beating someone bloody in a fight to work out where I stand with them."

Marco frowned. "I know what you mean about the messing with heads for the hell of it; I didn't realise it was to do with her recognising things in the people she did it to. I thought she was just being difficult, yoi."

"Sometimes she is," Ace agreed, "like sometimes I'm just spoiling for a fight. But when you see something in someone that could be a threat, you want to know where you stand."

"But she's letting this doctor look at her, yoi?" Marco asked.

"Yep; you know Fox is weird about orders sometimes?" It was a little scary to watch when Fox got like that. When she was in that kind of mood you had to be really careful what you said, because she _would_ do it. Taboo words never to be spoken in her hearing were "you wouldn't dare!" or phrases to that effect. Because she would, and generally did just to prove you wrong.

"Yes, yoi?" Marco said cautiously.

"It turns out my little brother is one of the people she automatically defers to," Ace said, slightly amused in spite of the seriousness of the situation. "He asked her if the baby was okay, she confessed she hadn't had a check-up and he decided the doctor whose been looking after him should look at her. And she just went with it."

"No complaint? No evasions? No, 'I can sort it out later, you don't need to worry'? _Nothing_, yoi?" Marco asked incredulously. "Does your brother have any idea how rare that is? Hell, does he understand how much power he's got there?"

"I don't know," Ace admitted. "He did introduce her as 'my assassin' so he might, but I'm not sure he knows what it _means_ to have an assassin. It certainly isn't like having any other kind of crew-mate."

Ace, Marco and the other Division Commanders had gotten a crash course in assassin etiquette –care and feeding of your professional killer– in the first year that Fox had started sticking around more often. The important thing to remember was that assassins, unlike pirates, were supposed to be tools. So they were trained to be instinctively obedient to their masters rather than argue when they didn't like what they were hearing. Fox didn't have a master, but she recognised Jinbe and Marco –particularly Marco– as 'carers', which meant she mostly did as they told her to unless it went against her personal code. This had initially included not even joining in the fun when the crew were messing around unless she had verbal permission. Ace didn't get it, but recognised that it was intrinsic to Fox and let it lie. She'd gotten better over time, but odd things still surfaced from time to time and tripped you up.

"She said Luffy was _her_ captain," Ace articulated slowly, feeling his way through the minefield. "She's put off joining Shanks for years even though he'd love to have her and almost sees her like his own kid. Pops would have loved to have her too but she always said no to him as well. She could have hand-picked her own crew and raised hell. She never did. But then she meets my little brother, lets him drag her into his crew and gets a bounty poster after years of being careful. Then she lets him outright _tell_ people she's _his assassin_." He swallowed. "You know, I think Luffy really _will_ make it to One Piece. Fox won't let anything stop him short of that now she's got his goal in mind."

Marco stilled. "You're right, that really is scary, yoi." He smiled. "But your brother's a good kid. He'll take care of her and won't take advantage, yoi."

"True." Ace brightened. His little brother was an idiot at times, but he was a good-hearted idiot who loved his crew like family. He wouldn't ever deliberately ask Fox to do anything that might hurt her and if he did by accident the rest of the crew would loudly make sure he recognised his mistake before it got anywhere.

"You gonna be joining your brother then, yoi?"

"I don't think so; I certainly won't any time soon," Ace said absently. "I've got to train first. Get my act together and work out what's changed. Then... well, we'll see."

* * *

Ace is having serious identity issues, as expected. Plus a little insight into Fox' attitude.


	93. Closure

**Closure**

Shanks organised the funeral; Marco really couldn't face it and didn't want to ask any of his brothers and sisters to do something he himself couldn't. Ace made himself scarce and hid in Swift Hunter, which had been hanging around since Marineford. Fox also retreated to her ship after handing over Ace' effects to Shanks, but rather than join Ace is the bedroom where he was thinking –fine, moping– she raided the wardrobe and locked herself inside the dojo for hours. Ace kept his distance, both physically and mentally: now she was no longer absorbed in healing him and making sure he was healthy the deaths she had caused at Marineford had come home to her and she was mourning them.

Fox was the only person Ace knew who mourned for the enemies she'd killed as much as the allies she'd lost. She held private memorials for her victims and did special or unusual things at them, to lay them to rest. She claimed it was so they didn't stay with her, which was a deeply creepy idea he could have gone without learning. Ace suspected Marineford was harder because she'd known some of the people she'd killed personally. He knew her work involved frequent trips to Marine Headquarters and she'd been tolerated there by most, if liked by only a few. Ironically, Garp was one of the few who didn't hold her parentage against her; Ace was a little bit sorry he couldn't tell Gramps he wasn't dead.

Ace had only witnessed one memorial, almost a year ago: Fox had bought a bottle of very expensive sake and spent the evening singing songs, telling stories and naming every single one of the dead in turn. Each person she'd killed had gotten a cup of sake that she'd sipped before tipping it onto the memorial bonfire, followed by a story or a song. It had gone on for half the night and by the end she'd been tipsy but utterly at peace. Ace had carried her back to the Moby Dick afterwards slung over his shoulder and she'd slept like the dead and been hung-over but cheerful the next morning. It astounded Ace that Fox always knew exactly who she'd killed, but chalked it up to her Devil Fruit. If that was part of her Ability he could understand why she'd make a point of honouring all of them.

From talking to Fox and unintentionally wandering across her thoughts in the evenings before bed he knew that the better she knew the people she'd killed, the more significant her offerings were. It also had something to do with how she'd killed them, but he was fuzzy on that part. He had picked up that her choice of offering this time made her feel deeply conflicted. She also wanted to do something for Pops, as a goodbye present, and her tangled feelings of pain, distaste, determination and exhilaration had made him feel so queasy he'd had to distance himself as strongly as possible. Those emotions did _not _belong together. Neither did he feel happy about accidentally eavesdropping on her memories of the people who he had last seen falling off the execution stand in more pieces than could ever be put back together. He didn't _want_ to know that guy had a girlfriend, or that other guy could be bribed into letting her raid the archive of confiscated goods if she brought him fresh sushi and pouted winsomely.

His connection to Fox was stretching his mind in all kinds of ways, but the one that hurt the most was how her way of seeing everyone as people first and Marines, pirates or whatever second was wearing down his innate fury and violent temper and making him see that people were just all people. Some were stupid, some were thoughtlessly cruel and some were genuinely evil, but most were just trying to make the best of things and a scant few threw themselves into making the world a better place in the best way they could find. Some of these last were pirates and some were Marines. They were all good people though and Fox felt terrible about having deprived some of those precious few of a chance to go on living.

Ace had woken in the middle of the night a few days previously to soothe Fox as she cried bitterly over a Vice-Admiral she'd decapitated who had a wife and two kids back in South Blue and had always done his best for the people in his care. Ace had hated that dream; the Vice-Admiral had been a genuinely good man and Fox had killed that same man to protect Ace. He felt sick and guilty and horribly conflicted about the whole thing and not knowing who he was anymore made it all worse.

* * *

When the actual funeral came around Ace had properly fitting clothing shoved at him by Fox, who then promptly vanished again. He had finally stopped growing, but considering he was eight foot two and rather more solidly built than previously none of his old clothes fitted. None of the clothes he'd worn even five days ago fitted either; Fox had been adjusting his shirts or making new pairs of trousers sometimes twice or three times a week. Once dressed he had been dragged out of the cabin by the newly-arrived Tempest, who had taken him down onto the beach where nine other mermaids were waiting; actually seven mermaids and two fishmen, he realised, taking a second look. The youngest mermaid was being carried by one of the fishmen and looked about nine or so; three appeared teenage or possibly in their twenties. The remaining three all had split tails and looked mature, if not exactly old.

"My brother, sisters, nieces and nephew," Tempest said gravely. "We are gathered here for the funeral of our father, who acknowledged us before his death that we might carry his name into the new age. We are also gathered to welcome our newest brother and uncle by blood, who has died to his former father and taken ours as his own in flesh and blood. Who welcomes him?"

"I, Edward Miranda, welcome him," said one of the older mermaids instantly.

"I, Edward Medea, welcome him," another of the older ones agreed.

"I, Edward Sycora, welcome him," the third of the mature mermaids added.

"I, Edward Cori, welcome him," the older fishman echoed.

"I, Edward Mermera, welcome him," agreed the oldest-looking of the younger mermaids, clueing Ace in that they were responding in age order.

"I, Edward Fera, welcome him," another of the younger mermaids recited, watching him inquisitively.

"I, Edward Kani, welcome him," the younger fishman juggling the squirming younger mermaid said.

"I, Edward Iris, welcome him," the youngest of the teenagers agreed.

"And I, Edward Symphia, welcome him also!" the youngest mermaid chirped brightly.

"Then as eldest I, Edward Tempest, do declare Edward D. Spadille part of our family, our blood, brother and uncle to those present who will bear the news to those who had to stay behind," Tempest said firmly. "He bears the name our father bestowed upon us, the D that is his birthright through his mother and the name Spadille in recognition of his past."

Ace blinked back tears as the younger fishman –Kani– carried the smallest mermaid –Symphia– forward and lifted her up so she could tip the shell full of sea water she was holding over his head. "Weclome to the family, big brother!" she said happily, dropping the shell to launch herself at him. Ace –Spadille, he had a new name now– caught the slippery armful and managed not to drop her as she hauled herself up his shirt to kiss him on the cheek.

"Fia, be careful," the mermaid he thought was called Sycora said reprovingly.

"Big brother won't drop me!" the little blonde insisted, tugging on his hair as she twisted in his grip.

"Perhaps not on purpose," the older mermaid agreed, "but you are a slippery armful even for those who are used to you."

It suddenly hit Ace that he had a whole lot more family including at least one little sister. He had a little sister. Having a little brother had been challenging enough!

"Fia-chan, I think Spadille-kun needs to sit down," Tempest said gently, gripping his elbow and lowering him onto a nearby boulder.

"Is big brother okay?" Ace blinked at the transparent concern in the round yellow eyes suddenly inches from his own. They were so like yet so unlike his Pops' had been that his breath caught in his throat.

"I, I think I will be, Fia-chan," he said faintly, not daring to look away.

"Do you miss Whitebeard-papa?" she asked innocently.

Ace' throat dried up. "Yeah," he agreed. "I really, really miss him." Pops would have been over the moon at having so many pretty daughters to spoil.

"Would he have liked me?"

Ace smiled even as a tear escaped and trickled down his cheek. "He would have loved you, Fia-chan."

* * *

Ace wasn't terribly coherent when Tempest handed him back over to Izo for the funeral itself, but managed to keep himself together despite the fact it was also _his_ funeral. He wasn't Portgas D. Ace anymore, he was Edward D. Spadille; he'd have to get used to the name. Tempest had named him 'Spadille', which had to be a joke and an acknowledgement: Ace of Spades, the Death card. He had died, but it hadn't stuck. That suddenly struck him as being hilarious and he had to clamp a hand over his mouth and close his eyes tightly to stop his hysteria from escaping. A few deep breaths later he was calm again, but it still felt incredibly strange to see his hat, beads and knife on the gravestone next to Pops', which had his bisento, flag and coat decorating it.

He suddenly decided he wouldn't get Pops' mark on his back again. He had Pops' name and that was enough. It wouldn't be right to mark himself as a Whitebeard Pirate when the Whitebeard Pirates didn't really exist anymore. Maybe they would be the Phoenix Pirates; once they'd finished mourning and decided what to do, anyway.

He still wasn't sure what he was going to do, but for now he would stay with Fox and find that deserted island she'd promised him so he could work out what was wrong with his Devil Fruit.

It hit him then, staring at the flag flying over the grave, that Pops really was dead and wasn't ever going to come back. He didn't even try to stop the tears.

* * *

Fox didn't join the funeral; she couldn't. Just could not do it. Her memorial was going to be difficult enough without having an audience of thousands. So while everyone else was away she unloaded all of her things and Ace' things onto Swift Hunter so that they could stay behind when Shanks left and collected the things she needed for the three offerings she had decided upon.

One for the Marines she had killed, one for Whitebeard…

… and one for Portgas D. Ace. Luffy's brother might still be among the living, but the Pirate King's son was not. She wasn't sure how much of Rouge's son survived, either. Ace had never been the normal kind of D and his despondency worried her.

Landing on the far side of the island from the rest of the fleet of Whitebeard's sons and allies, Fox found an isolated stretch of beach and set about her preparations. For her dead, these dead to whom she owed far more than any save her first dead, she would dance.

Putting on the tiny top, shorts and silk streamers that ran from collar to wristband and waistband to ankle cuff, all in dark turquoise, followed by the heavy jewellery that mimicked the weight of the shackles she had once worn and that the dance routine could not be completed without, Fox wondered again why she'd ever accepted, bought or stolen these outfits in the first place. It wasn't like she'd ever worn any of them before now except that once on Whitebeard's birthday when she had been nineteen and he seventy. She hadn't even so much as removed this particular one from the wardrobe before today.

Shifting so as to get accustomed to the unpleasantly familiar weight around her neck, wrists and ankles, Fox paced across the sand, smoothing it under her toes and testing the surface. Damp but firm; good. Closing her eyes, she let the memory of a lone drum beat carry her away as her body moved in ways that would never be forgotten.

A dance for sorrow, for betrayal, for loss and for difficult choices. For the men she'd killed and those they'd left behind. For making a choice she did not regret, though she mourned those who had died as a result of it. An apology and a plea for acceptance.

Tears ran down her cheeks unchecked though her movements remained precise and her rhythm perfect. So much had been lost, but the world would not stop for it. Life would go on whether she wanted it to or not. Better to recognise it, accept it and let it slowly ease her pain than to cling to her hurts and die of them, but letting go was the hardest part.

She danced for a very long time, until the sun sank towards the horizon and her body ached from the unaccustomed movements. Then she washed, ate, changed and headed up the hill to the gravesite: the Whitebeard Pirates and allies had moved down to the beaches by their ships to drink and remember the Yonko who had led them for so long. There wouldn't be anyone to see her dance for Edward Newgate in the dying light of the evening.

* * *

Goodbyes are always difficult and funerals hurt.


	94. Pulse

**Pulse **

Ace retreated back up the hill after the drinking and storytelling really got going; he'd had trouble getting drunk even before his Devil Fruit started acting up and he didn't want to listen to his brothers and friends reminiscing about him. A dead man had no place in a wake.

As he wandered up the slope back towards the graves he gradually became aware of a beat in his head and Zoro's gradually increasing interest in what was happening at Ace' end of the connection. The asura had backed off completely during the funeral but something had brought his attention back; probably something connected to Fox as she was one of two things that held Zoro's constant attention.

Ace vacillated between being amused and exasperated by the fact that the only things the asura was interested in were his ambition of becoming the strongest swordsman in the world and Fox. Oh and alcohol, but he'd give up alcohol in an instant if it meant he could have the first two. His dreams were all of sparring or of Fox, or both. Some of those dreams had jerked Ace awake in the small hours of the morning, hands clenched into fists as he reminded himself that Fox was his best friend and pregnant by someone else so he should _not_ kiss her awake and see if she'd be willing to help him with the 'problem' accidentally invading Zoro's fantasies had left him with. Never mind that she was wearing a baggy tank top and shorts and was sprawled halfway across his chest. Never mind that the damn asura's cast-iron certainty in how he stood with Fox was wearing down Ace' rather tenuous sense of self to the point that looking at Fox sometimes made him think _mine_ before he caught himself and remembered those weren't his thoughts.

It didn't help that sometimes when he thought that he got an echo back from his best friend that said _mine_ in answer to him, and that Zoro always responded with _and mine._ He may have been a pirate but he had morals. It did not help that the asura was a shameless pervert where Fox was concerned –despite barely even noticing other women existed– and had practiced his little eavesdropping trick until he could observe the world through Ace' senses without it affecting either of their bodies' reflexes. Zoro had been mostly present for over half of the four days before the immediate run-up to the funeral and had been driving Ace crazy with his obsessiveness. Some of it had slipped through; Fox however hadn't minded being pulled into his lap to snuggle or having her hair played with and had happily snuggled back. The smugly contented and lethargic feeling in his chest had frightened him because he wasn't sure how much of it was actually his. Shutting out Zoro was much harder than shutting out Fox. Well, shutting out how the damned asura felt about Fox was the bit he couldn't work out how to do. He couldn't look at her now without thinking about how her skin felt under his hands, watching how her muscles moved under her skin and following the graceful swing of her hips as she walked. When he wasn't wandering into Zoro's dreams he was often having similar dreams of his own.

Ace stopped dead as his eyes suddenly registered what the light up ahead was and stared, the asura watching through him abruptly rising closer to the surface to raptly observe the scene before him illuminated by flickering lamplight and the distant stars.

* * *

Fox had changed into dark red for her second dance, picking a calf-length but lightweight silk skirt and a tiny corset top to go with the heavy jewellery she would be wearing and a gauzy scarf as a prop. She was also wearing matching thin slippers to cushion her feet against the pebbles and potentially sharp vegetation underfoot.

Unlike her previous performance, this dance was all about joy and celebration. Whitebeard had enjoyed a long and full life, had a massive family and had died on the battlefield defending what mattered to him. It was also more than slightly suggestive, as Pops had never hidden his fondness for pretty girls and was probably grinning down at her from the afterlife. This dance was best performed to music, but Fox had been taught to fight to the beat of her pulse and could dance to that beat just as easily. Her stamina meant her pulse was steady despite having danced for so many hours already so she twisted, kicked, gestured and twitched with confidence and grace, never missing a step. This was a long routine, not anywhere as long as the earlier one but still a considerable effort. It was also harder due to the little flirtatious movements of her hips, stomach and spine that had to be fitted around the steps without disrupting the flow of the routine.

Fox subsumed herself to the ebb and flow of the beat in her head and let her body move unimpeded by her higher mind, just as she did when she fought. Her body knew what to do and thinking would just slow her down. This utter obliviousness to everything outside her dance floor came back to bite her when she finished and resurfaced to find herself being stared at by Ace, who had Zoro's insatiable appetite peeking out from behind the flame Logia's own burning –and fiercely denied– lust.

"I've never seen you do that before," her best friend managed to say, his voice a full octave and a half lower than the newly-established norm and his eyes wide and dark.

"Being a slave rather soured dancing for me," she said calmly, moving slowly over to the side where she'd left the portable clothes chest, "well, performing anyway. I've only ever danced once since until today and that was for your Pops' seventieth."

"That was you?" Fox caught a mental flash of several different faces and gossip about who could have smuggled a dancing girl on board to give Pops a private performance.

"That was me," she agreed, stepping out of the rough square of light so she could get changed. This was a very dangerous game she was playing and all kinds of things could go wrong, but Zoro honestly didn't mind and Ace was second-guessing himself so much and so confused he was ignoring his own feelings. Fox knew she wasn't entirely rational right now –pregnancy hormones were a trip and dancing made her even more reckless– but she had always found Ace alluring and if he'd ever made a move she would have reciprocated. Now she could feel his emotions under her skin in a tangle of passion, desire, hopelessness and pain and needed to do something about it.

Fox could feel Ace' eyes on her in the flickering shadows as she slipped out of her relatively modest outfit into something far more revealing. She hadn't planned on him actually seeing her in this, but now he was here and her blood was running hot and she had a deliciously wicked idea that her mother would have thoroughly approved of. As she changed her anklets she gave Zoro a mental nudge, asking him to back off. He sent her a mental pout, but agreed grudgingly when she gave him an idea of what she wanted to do and why. Ace would not appreciate an audience for what she had planned. As a sweetener she sent her swordsman the idle thought she'd had a while back, her plan of giving him a private performance to test his self-control. The dark, predatory anticipation she got in return made her shiver in excitement before he backed off completely and walled them both off and out of his mind. Fox suspected that the odd monkeys she'd seen him fighting on Kuraigana would soon be suffering her swordsman's frustration at missing out.

* * *

Ace' mind cleared slightly when Zoro retreated completely from his mind and blocked himself out, but the clarity didn't last as Fox stepped back into the illuminated area wearing a skimpy little gold string bikini with a fringe hanging down to just above her belly button and a fringe skirt that almost but didn't quite cover her buttocks. Seeing her like that, all pale skin and gleaming fabric and teasing shadows, utterly destroyed his mental processes and the faint chiming sound she made every time she moved did not help. She had bells on her anklets and bracelets and the deliberate stalk she affected as she approached him made them ring out with every step. Her swaying movements also swung the fringes over her stomach and upper thighs and made her breasts bounce in counterpoint; Ace could not look away and distantly wondered if his brain had leaked out of his ears while he wasn't paying attention. He was sure there had been a reason why he hadn't already stripped her naked and had his way with her until she was hoarse from screaming his name but he couldn't remember it right now.

"It was Portgas D. Ace' funeral too so I had another dance in mind to do next," Fox said throatily, walking right up to him and running her hands up his chest to settle over his collarbones, "but since you're here I think I'll do it just for you, my Kajin." She leant forwards into him and gave him a perfect view of her mostly-exposed cleavage. "Here, or on Swift Hunter?"

Ace blinked stupidly before he remembered that this was Pops' grave and his brothers were partying at the bottom of the hill. He didn't want any of them to come looking for him and see her like this. "Swift Hunter," he said thickly, stumbling slightly as the flash of white and warmth engulfed him and they were suddenly standing in the dojo.

"Sit," Fox said, gently pushing him onto the sturdy stool sitting in the middle of the floor. Ace sat, remembered why he wasn't supposed to be doing this and was about to protest when the lights dropped to semi-twilight and Fox _moved_.

Ace had been hit on by a lot of pretty girls, had bedded a lot of those pretty girls and had seen a lot of ladies in skimpy outfits doing sexy dances, but Fox' movements had an edge of predatory violence that had him aching to do, do _something_. He'd known she was a tease but this took not just the cake but the entire six-course banquet! He groaned as she sidled close enough to run her fingers across his cheek before backing up again, then twirled around behind him and stole his shirt. Seeing her press the garment against her nose and twitch her hips suggestively almost undid him.

"Fox," he gasped, barely recognising his own voice as he closed his eyes tightly and tried to breathe. Fire struggled to escape from under his skin and he was having trouble keeping in down. "Can't…" he managed, opening his eyes again pleadingly as green flames flickered over his thighs. "Please…"

Fox pouted with her hands behind her back and prowled forwards, dropping to her knees in front of him. Ace was about to ask what she was doing when she started taking off his shoes and he had to concentrate on not bursting into flame. One boot, one sock, other boot, other sock…

The flames suddenly vanished and Ace gasped at the absence and weakness he felt. Shifting his leg he saw a Sea Stone cuff around one ankle. "Wh-"

"Now you can't set me on fire, Kajin," Fox purred, pouring herself up his legs and into his lap with a smirk that promised him everything he'd ever dreamed of doing to her in the bedroom but never dared to try. "So how about I set you on fire instead, hm?"

Ace stopped protesting, stopped fighting and stopped thinking. He nearly stopped breathing. Then he remembered he was a pirate and what pirates wanted, they took and that he had _never_ backed down from a challenge in his life. His answering smirk before he leant forwards to whisper in her ear made her eyelashes flutter.

"Bring it on, Kitsune," he dared her. Her dark-eyed look of anticipatorial delight as she accepted the challenge was the sexiest thing he'd ever seen.

* * *

Aaand cut!


	95. Haste

**Haste **

Mihawk really couldn't see what had drawn his daughter to someone as young, arrogant and inexperienced as Roronoa Zoro. His determination to reunite with her was commendable, but his bull-headed recklessness was not. The World's Greatest Swordsman had therefore left the angry, injured and exhausted boy to fight the humandrils; perhaps defeat would teach him humility.

* * *

Having his injuries tended to by Perona was painful, humiliating and tedious but Zoro recognised that depending on Fox would not do him any favours in the long run. She had already reinforced and strengthened his body to the point that he needed little beyond basic medical care in order to recover from most injuries and grow stronger; nothing short of major organ damage or maiming was worth bothering her for. As it was her power trickled into him constantly through the connection, giving him greater reserves to work with and steadily improving his stamina and recovery time.

Perona still irritated him though.

"Oi! I got a newspaper!" said irritant called out as she returned to the ruins where they were currently holed up. "Your captain's in it!"

Luffy was in the paper? "Show me!" he demanded, cursing his current inability to sit up and that Fox had made him tell Perona to bandage his back and arms too firmly for him to move them until tomorrow. Okay, he agreed a bruised spine was a serious injury but he needed to see this!

Perona huffed but held the folded-over paper over his face. "There; happy?"

Zoro stared, eyes dancing over the type and stopping on the picture. There had to be a message there…

"Hey! Are you not done yet? My arms are getting tired!" Perona complained.

"Just a minute, there's something here!" Zoro protested. "Luffy isn't the sort of guy to do this sort of thing! If Rayleigh's with him it must've been his idea; there's got to be something more to it!"

Fox unfortunately had no idea what it might be, but directed his attention to the ink on their captain's arm as a possible place to start. Zoro looked more closely at the design, then up at Perona:

"Are there any more pictures of Luffy in the paper? Pictures that were taken at the same time as this one? And can you get me some paper and a pencil? Please?"

The 'please' did it.

* * *

Fox sat cross-legged on top of Swift Hunter's head and sewed a seam, watching as half a mile away on the small, empty island she'd found in the Calm Belt Edward D. Spadille, her Ace of Spades, burnt the vegetation down to ash and turned the bedrock beneath it into semi-melted mush. In her head Zoro watched as well while they discussed the message Luffy had sent them.

_Two years then?_

_Yes, _Zoro answered. _Is that okay for you? I want to be there for you, but…_

_Captain's orders come first,_ Fox agreed regretfully. _Two years is a long time; maybe I can visit. I've still got my own ship and my father insists I'm never unwelcome in his home. _She paused. _Two years is pretty good, actually. By then the baby will be old enough to leave with someone and I'll have had time to get back in shape._

_Leave the baby somewhere?!_

_We can't take a toddler into the New World when our captain plans to fight his way past established pirates and the rest of the Supernovas to get to One Piece,_ Fox pointed out unhappily, _Never mind that Blackbeard's out here somewhere. I want his head to hang on my wall but I'm going to have to wait. Moth comes first, and getting dragged into Luffy's adventures would not be a good thing for a child who probably will have only just started walking. Our focus would be divided.  
_

Unhappy silence. Fox closed her eyes and shook as bitter misery rocked her, a mixture of her own feelings and her swordsman's.

_The baby comes first,_ Zoro agreed eventually, putting his own dislike of the situation aside. _And I agree that the Sunny is not exactly a good place to raise a small child. Who did you have in mind?_

_Nobody particular yet, but I'm leaning towards Sako and his wives. They have three children already and they're all good kids._

_And everyone on the island worships you, so the baby would be safe from pirates,_ Zoro pointed out. _But I want to see them first, even if I can't meet them in person._

_A good idea; there're a lot of things I need to put in place before I even consider leaving my baby with them, which would be well over a year away anyway,_ Fox agreed. _And I need to check my old haunts and make sure my safe houses are still safe. Then we need to discuss the whole situation with Kajin and get his input._

_I'll call on you once I've defeated these damned monkeys and got your father to agree to train me,_ Zoro said. _Take care, Kitsune._

_You too, Asura,_ Fox murmured back with a wave of pride and affection as he faded from her mind, letting her attention become fully absorbed by what her other lover was doing. She suspected that she didn't have much time before Ace got sufficiently accustomed to the situation to let Zoro talk him into ganging up on her, but wasn't sure she would mind when it happened. Her Kajin had finally got his feet firmly planted on the ground again and was making progress at long last. If her captain wanted her to spend two years improving her weaknesses before they reunited at Sabaody, then Fox could do that. It would give her time to coddle herself through her pregnancy, see her baby weaned and get herself back into fighting shape afterwards. Of course, physical fitness wasn't all that relevant for haki, so she would have plenty of time to play.

Ace would have things he wanted to do as well, but she could work with that.

* * *

Mihawk had been terribly disappointed in Roronoa when he returned to the castle four days later, bowed his head to the ground and asked to be taught while dripping blood on the floor. To lose a fight and then crawl before a declared enemy for lessons? He was not worth teaching. When the young swordsman however declared he had defeated the baboons and that the only undefeated enemy on the island was the Shichibukai himself, Mihawk failed to hide his shock. Roronoa however went on:

"But I am not fool enough to believe that I have any hope of defeating you here and now."

"I still do not understand: if you consider me an enemy, then why would you prostrate yourself before me and ask for my teachings? What purpose does this serve?!"

Roronoa looked up and glared. "So that I may surpass you!" he declared fiercely.

Mihawk couldn't help it: he burst out laughing. It was the most ridiculous thing he'd heard since his daughter confessed the full tale of what had happened when she first bedded the warrior who worshipped her.

"You ask me to raise by my own hands the swordsman who will take my life?" he laughed. "You are a strange one for sure!" He snorted. "A ridiculous notion; your actions are nonetheless quite unsightly… It would seem you have found a greater cause than your own ambition." He stared at the boy his daughter had attached herself to. "Did Lisska put you up to this?"

Roronoa shook his head. "She just asked me to ensure she was on hand to put the pieces back together again when I fight you for your title," he said, scowling. "She said-" he frowned, eyes glazing over slightly, "-'just because my shishou made _sure_ I had surpassed him once I'd learned all he could teach doesn't mean I want you to follow my example'."

Mihawk stilled. That did explain why he had not been able to locate the man; he had fought Lisska to the death and lost. And he had done so when she was only fifteen; she had grown stronger in every day since then.

He smiled. This would be interesting. "Ghost-girl! Tend to his wounds!"

"Ah! Don't you dare order me around!" the pinkette squawked angrily.

"We can begin training only once your wounds are healed," Mihawk went on, ignoring her and smiling to himself. This was certainly going to be most interesting; he had never taken a student before. Perhaps his daughter was not as blind as she seemed in choosing Roronoa.

* * *

Oddly enough, to write a chapter which features a lot of Fox, Zoro and Ace and their relationship/connection I have to listen to the Talking Heads' album 'Stop Making Sense'. On repeat. It is weirdly suitable.


	96. Flame

**Flame**

Ace sat on the beach of the nameless island he'd reduced to ash and slag while experimenting with his Devil Fruit Ability, eating the food Fox had brought over. They'd been here for a week now and while he was quickly getting the hang of his limits and how to control how much flame he emitted at a time, he wasn't any closer to understanding why his powers had changed so drastically. His lover –and wasn't it both so odd and so wonderful to think of Fox that way– sat opposite him, a cushion protecting her from the glass and deformed rock he had reduced the once-sandy expanse to.

"What're you brooding over, Kajin?" Ace glanced over at the snowy-haired woman again and grinned.

"Hey, what makes you think I'm brooding, hm Kitsune? I could be imagining what I'm going to do to you in bed now I don't need that damn shackle to keep the fire under my skin!" It had been humiliating to have to rely on Sea Stone to keep himself from accidentally immolating her, but that was past now.

"Nice try," Fox said dryly, "but you've got this little furrow between your eyebrows that says you're brooding. Spill; or do I have to coax it out of you?"

"I wouldn't say no to coaxing," Ace leered.

"Don't change the subject Kajin," Fox said calmly. "You're bothered about something. Either you tell me now or I go rooting around for it later."

"Fine, fine," Ace raised his hands in surrender. "I just don't understand why my powers have suddenly changed. It doesn't make sense! Devil Fruit is what it is, so how come mine is so different all of a sudden?"

Fox shifted on her cushion. "Edward D. Spadille, my darling Kajin, what is flame?"

Ace stared at her. "It's fire, of course."

"So what is fire?" Ace shifted under that steady, expectant gaze.

"Er, hot? How things burn?" he ventured.

"You never had any kind of schooling really, did you?"

"No," Ace muttered grumpily. It wasn't like he was ignorant or anything! He had fantastic survival skills and was a great fighter! He could read, write, do sums, sail and navigate so what else did he need?

"Easy there Kajin; it wasn't a put-down," Fox said gently. "I forget sometimes that most people don't have my education; my father taught me more than most people realise exists."

"Mihawk taught you?"

"Oh yes; he drilled me relentlessly and gave me things to memorise and think about even when he wasn't going to be there," Fox admitted. "I'm a compulsive learner even now." She paused. "Back to the subject: flame is visible heat."

"Huh?" That just did not make sense.

Fox produced a sturdy candle from the picnic basket, lit it and set it on a saucer. "Is the flame any hotter than the air above it? Or around it?"

Ace poked the flame experimentally. The air immediately above it was in fact just as hot as the flame itself. A little more investigation proved the bottom of the flame was in fact rather cool.

"You've seen things spontaneously combust, haven't you?" Fox asked.

"Yeah." Piles of damp leaf litter in the jungles back on Dawn Island had done that occasionally on hot days. He had no idea why or how though.

"If a thing that has the potential to burn gets hot enough it will burst into flames," Fox said, "because flames are the visible manifestation of heat. Conversely, things can also burn without ever giving off visible flames."

Ace nodded; everything made sense so far but what did that mean to him?

"So, Kajin: you ate the Flame-Flame Fruit. What are you made of?"

"Visible heat…" Ace trailed off. There was a lot more to heat than there was to fire. Steel didn't burn, but heat melted it. He'd once seen people collapse after getting too close to a furnace. Heat distorted the air to create mirages, as he'd seen recently on Alabasta. Heat affected everything, even things that didn't burn.

"You get it now?" Ace grinned.

"I think so. But if I've always been able to do this stuff, why haven't I found out before?"

"Did you experiment? I mean seriously experiment, like find out how hot you could get your flames, how far you could expand your area of influence, the differences between being partially transformed and fully transformed?"

"Not really," Ace admitted sheepishly. He'd mostly been interested in how he could set things on fire. What she said sounded worth investigating though.

"There you go then."

"But why now?"

Fox sighed. "Do you know why Sakazuki was able to hit you?"

"Who?"

"Admiral Akainu's real name is Sakazuki."

"Oh; he said lava was superior to flame-"

Fox snorted. "You actually _listened_ to the garbage he was spewing? I just ignore him on principle; he's a fanatic, a hypocrite and not worth wasting time on. Listen: flame _is insubstantial_. You just put your finger through that candle flame; it has no mass. It is weightless. It is a visible manifestation of heat and you can't hit heat; there's nothing to hit."

"Then how did he hit me?"

Fox sighed. "Ace, you favour a physical fighting style. This means that when you are fighting you _cannot_ be in your full Logia form as your hits would go right through people. You'd probably leave nasty third-degree burns, but you wouldn't feel any impact and neither would they. I think you automatically suppressed your Devil Fruit Ability when you fought so it only affected your skin, that way your muscles and bones could still land physical hits. When you hit Sakazuki the flames did not affect him as your Logias are complementary, but as you were only partially transformed he damaged the underlying tissue you were trying to hit him with."

Ace could visualise how that would be possible. "So when I tried to protect Luffy..." he trailed off.

"Flame is insubstantial; bullets do go right through you," Fox said gently. "You blocked that blow with your physical body while suppressing your Devil Fruit as much as possible. Otherwise he'd have gone through you like you weren't there."

Ace blanched and shivered. Knowing that was so, so much more frightening that just thinking he'd been unlucky in his opponent.

"You'd have been better off trying to shove Luffy out of the way," Fox mused idly, "but hindsight is not helpful at this juncture. Anyway, you got very badly injured and almost died, though you can't really remember it. Your subconscious however remembers it perfectly, as does your body and neither want to go through that ever again. So your Devil Fruit Ability is now being tapped much more heavily so that when you perceive any kind of threat you automatically assume your Logia form from the _inside_ rather than from the outside like you did before. Rather than remaining in a layer under your skin the flames are now coming from your core."

"So this is what the Fruit was supposed to make me into, but I was ignoring it," Ace summarised, "and now I can't ignore it anymore."

"Basically," Fox agreed. "Remember that flame is insubstantial, so you _cannot_ stand in front of people and defend them; it just won't work as fire has no defensive properties. You have to attack your enemies and do so relentlessly: fire is a purely offensive ability. Your enemies won't be able to touch you, but you can't physically touch them either."

"But, that's my whole fighting style!" Ace protested.

Fox watched him steadily from under her lashes. "How did Blackbeard beat you?"

"He touched…" Ace trailed off. "I hate you and your logic. Why do you always have to be right?"

"It doesn't have to be anything more complicated than gloves or knuckledusters," Fox pointed out mildly, "and once you've got the hang of your Devil Fruit I can teach you more about haki, which will give you all the defensive power you could possibly desire as well as enable you to land hits."

"Tricky Kitsune," Ace muttered, smirking appreciatively. "I can use a bo staff too."

"We'll find someone capable for you to spar against, Kajin," Fox said. "In the meantime I'll teach you some Fishman Karate stances. You won't be able to throw water with them, but with a bit of playing around you should be able to use the framework to throw fire."

"Ooh, nice." Ace knew exactly how powerful Fishman karate could be; he'd fought Jinbe to a standstill once. He also recognised adding some formal training would be very helpful towards improving his own instinctive brawling style.

"I recognise that I can't stop you from wanting to beat people in the ground," Fox said teasingly, "but this way you can do so without leaving gaping holes in your defences."

Ace chucked a plum stone at her; she ducked it. "What did you mean when you said my Ability was complimentary to Sakizuki's?" he asked.

Fox grinned. "Lava is molten rock, which in nature is frequently on fire. So if you'd been in full Logia form when he hit you, you would have just flowed around him without being harmed. You might even be able to walk right _through_ him next time you meet him, though you certainly can't do each-other any harm with your respective Abilities."

Ace grinned, eyes glinting madly. He liked the sound of that so, so much! "That's what haki is for," he said maliciously. He was going to work himself into the ground to make this work!

"It is indeed," Fox agreed, smiling a little cruelly. "I'd suggest learning to use a blade of some kind too, just in case you run into Blackbeard."

Oh yes: Devil Fruit Abilities may not work on the traitor but blades would still cut him. Especially Sea Stone blades. Ace smiled. "Kitsune, my precious, my beloved?"

"What do you want, Kajin?"

Ace graced her with a pleading look. "Can I have one of your Sea Stone weapons? Pretty please?"

Fox stared flatly at him. "Not until you can prove to me you are capable of using a normal steel equivalent," she stated.

"I can live with that." He paused. "Is there anybody chasing after Teach now?"

"Not that I know of, but he's been blacklisted by the network so everyone who sees him will report him in and likely engage in a little recreational sabotage in the hopes of getting a bonus," Fox said cheerfully.

Ace brightened instantly; that sounded _wonderful_. "It couldn't have happened to a better person," the flame Logia said blissfully. "I wish I could see it."

* * *

A slower chapter, but still important. I always felt Ace was under-using his abilities compared to the admirals or even Crocodile.


	97. Evasion

**Evasion **

Ace sat at the kitchen table in Swift Hunter, idly playing around with a handful of cooler flames he'd finally worked out how to create. They were basically a recreation of the will 'o wisps you saw in graveyards sometimes, pale green and barely hot at all by his standards. On the other side of the table Fox was cutting vegetables for stir fry; they'd left the now barren island in the Calm Belt behind the previous day and were travelling somewhere more populated to restock supplies.

"Fox?"

"Yes, Spadille?"

"Isn't it about time for your next check-up?" Ace had a very good sense of time in spite of his narcolepsy; he was aware of the passing of minutes and hours and could keep track of what day of the week it was as well as what day of the month. His near-death experience had briefly confused his inner clock but he was over that now. Fox on the other hand had an abysmal sense of time and was barely able to keep track of whether it was morning or evening unless outside, let alone remember how many days had passed since a specific event. She plotted things she had to do by the lunar phases and kept meticulous notes on her Log so as not to lose track.

"Technically yes, but my doctor is still in Paradise and we're six hours behind him; so while it's dinner time here where he is it's some ungodly hour of tomorrow morning," Fox said. "I'll be visiting him at what will be first thing after breakfast for him, but very late at night for us."

"Who is your doctor anyway?" Ace asked, letting the flames roll up one arm, over his shoulders and down the other. He was hoping there'd be a tattooist in the port they were visiting; he felt horribly naked without ink.

"Trafalgar Law," Fox said, sweeping the neatly diced vegetables into the pan.

"The Surgeon of Death? That Trafalgar Law?!" The flames remained controlled despite his shock; Ace felt moderately proud of that.

"I don't know of any other Trafalgar Law Kajin, do you?"

"But, but," Ace paused, frowning. "Wait… does this mean it was _Law_ who got Luffy away from Marineford and patched him up? That does not make sense."

"Law's a professional, Kajin," Fox said calmly, "and a lot like me in some ways. He helped Luffy pretty much for the hell of it so far as I can tell, and agreed to be my doctor during my pregnancy because he is curious both about my Devil Fruit and about the Sea Network. My mother is also interested in _him_, which while not exactly a ringing endorsement means I'm willing to let him near me. Mother has a knack for finding reliable people."

"Reliable rather than trustworthy?" Ace probed. Fox was picky in her wording.

"Law is a doctor and a pirate captain who wants to reach One Piece," Fox said patiently. "Being a doctor, he is rational, intelligent and highly capable. Being a pirate captain, he is used to commanding others, makes unilateral decisions that further his goals and is not above resorting to terror and violence to get his way. Unlike Luffy he likely has a well-thought-out plan to carry him to the top, which probably involves making a name for himself to reduce challengers. Hence his reputation."

Ace ran all that through his own mind and conceded it made sense. "Sounds like something you would do, Kitsune," he commented.

"Which is why I'm letting him be my doctor," Fox agreed. "He's very logical and recognises that helping me could further his own ambitions, though I suspect a certain amount of professional pride is also involved. I believe he wants information off the network as well; if he's anything like me he'll want to be well-informed and my mother knows everything worth knowing on the Grand Line."

"So you trust him to be a good doctor, but you're wary of the pirate aspect?" Ace guessed.

"I know he's a brilliant doctor and both I and the baby will be in excellent hands, so long as treating me remains in his best interests or at least has no negative bearing on his ambitions," Fox clarified. "So I'm going to be moderately helpful and very well-behaved while on board his submarine, but I'm still going to carry my knives every time."

"Gotcha." Ace felt happier about the situation now. "How long until that's ready?" he added plaintively as the smell of her cooking taunted him.

"Another fifteen minutes, you bottomless pit," Fox said fondly. "The meat in the oven will be ready now though, so serve yourself."

Ace bounced to his feet, around the table and opened the oven door, removing the metal tray loaded with several large joints of Sea King meat without bothering with the oven mitt. He plonked the tray down on the table, shut the oven and started eating before he'd even sat down again. His appetite had grown immensely since his growth spurt and he was still putting on muscle mass, so Fox augmented every single meal with Sea King meat; Swift Hunter lived up to her name despite being rather small by Sea King standards.

"Now you've got your flames under control you can work on your physical abilities for a while," Fox said as she stirred the pan. "I've got a safe house on this island so we can stick around for a bit."

"Whose territory is it?" Ace asked.

"Shanks; most of my safe-houses are on his turf," Fox admitted, "or else totally off the beaten track altogether, on the islands that Log Poses can't find. I'm not going near the ones in what used to be Whitebeard's territory until I know for sure who's claimed what, I never trusted Kaido enough to set up shop on any of his islands and Big Mom is too greedy for living under her protection to be worth it."

"So I'll be seeing a lot of places I haven't been to very much, if at all," Ace mused; "should be fun."

* * *

Law was eating breakfast and steadily making inroads on his first cup of coffee when his nose tingled, making him sneeze. On opening his eyes he found the enigmatic Fox sitting opposite him, elbows propped up on the table as around them the Heart Pirates exploded into muffled speculation and moderate panic. They were in the middle of nowhere and a good way below the sea's surface, so the panic was perhaps legitimate.

"Fox-ya," he drawled, sipping his coffee with a bland smile.

"Doctor Law," she responded, inclining her head politely. "I trust you meant twenty-eight days when you specified I should come back in a month's time?"

"I did; will I be sneezing every time you show up?"

"Quite possibly," she conceded, her expression bland and thoughtful; "is that a serious inconvenience?"

Law waved a hand dismissively as he finished his coffee; Fox was interesting, more interesting than her captain. Luffy was a D and therefore a catalyst of change, but Straw-Hat's assassin was more personally intriguing. Her deadpan humour and bland mockery were rather entertaining; it had been a while since he'd met someone who responded to him with humour rather than terror.

"Why breakfast time?" he asked.

"It is a little past midnight by my count, Doctor Law," his patient said sweetly; "I felt an early visit would be more convenient for you, but if you prefer that I come back later…"

"Now is fine," Law said, pushing the remains of his meal away and standing up. "I will be setting a proper date and time for your next appointment though; I don't want you dropping in when I'm busy." He really should have thought of that before letting her leave last time; she could have arrived in the middle of a fight, or while he was working on someone.

"You are the doctor," Fox said, getting up and walking around the table. Law narrowed his eyes at her.

"Fox-ya, are you armed?"

She dipped her chin and peeked up at him from under her lashes. "Doctor Law, I am isolated from my comrades and on a strange pirate ship; of course I am armed."

"You weren't armed last time," Law noted as he led the way out of the galley and up a floor to the theatre.

"I was doing the laundry when I was called away and my captain was to hand, as was Grandpa Ray," Fox pointed out, reminding Law of her kinship to the Dark King. "I'm not sure what would have happened if you'd tried to harm me but it wouldn't have been pretty."

Law conceded she had a point there. "So you don't trust me?"

"I trust your professionalism, but I too am a professional," Fox said pleasantly. "Weapons mean I do not feel the need to use my Devil Fruit when threatened, and I've been informed that pregnancy has made more aggressive in the defence of my personal space. I'm sure you don't want me to paint the walls of your ship with brains just because someone jostled me in the corridor; knife wounds are less final."

What a lovely threat: graphic, matter-of-fact and utterly believable. Law was impressed. He opened the door for her and ushered her inside. "How many knives?" he asked blandly.

Fox eyed him. "You're going to make me undress, so why ask?"

Law shrugged. "I'd like to know if I've missed noticing any."

She raised an eyebrow, sitting on the edge of the operating table. "Eighteen knives; I refuse to comment on what else I'm carrying."

Law nodded, accepting the challenge. "You'll have to take them all off so I can weigh you again," he pointed out mildly; "now take your shirt off please."

* * *

By the end of her check-up Law had seen twelve of the eighteen knives –he suspected the remaining six were hidden in her boots– four of which were definitely made of Kairoseki, several lengths of garrotte wire incorporated in her belt, a few small explosives that might either be smoke bombs or firecrackers and a number of needles dipped in sealed packets of what was probably poison. He'd also determined there was nothing wrong with her or the baby and that his patient could probably deceive you into believing that up was down and black was white without ever uttering a single lie.

"Has anyone ever told you that you're utterly frustrating?" he asked as she got dressed again, slotting the various weapons back into their places with brisk professionalism.

"I'll take that as a compliment," she said dryly. "Now what do you really want this time?"

Law paused; she'd noticed?

"I'm well trained," she quipped, pulling her boots on. "Ask."

"I want you to flay the Hoof of the Dragon from my most recently acquired member of my crew," Law said bluntly, "and I want to watch."

Fox looked him in the eye. "Deal," she said coolly. "Now?"

"Now," Law agreed, smiling. Getting to watch her work would tell him much more than trying to extract the information out of her.

"Fine. Can I borrow one of your scalpels? I could do it with my knives but a scalpel is more suited to the task."

"Go ahead, Fox-ya; use what you like," Law said, waving a hand to encompass the room. "I'll fetch your patient."

As he left the theatre he heard her mutter, "Why can't I find even _one_ doctor I don't feel the urge to stab at least once a visit?" which made him pause on the threshold.

"How many of your doctors have you stabbed, Fox-ya?"

"All of them so far except you," she said frankly. "Kajiki I only occasionally stabbed through the hands and once in the leg; all the other stabbings were fatal. I don't like doctors much: you all feel like assassins to me and it makes me twitchy. You at least don't make a secret of the fact that you kill people, Doctor Law."

An interesting attitude. "If you do stab me, try to avoid anything important," he called over his shoulder as he left to find Jean Bart, "or I won't let you come back."

* * *

Life goes on and Fox has her second appointment.


	98. Theatre

**Theatre**

Law watched attentively as Fox ran her glowing hands lightly over Jean Bart's back, outlining the slave brand with her fingertips.

"As I'm not in such a hurry as I was in the Auction House I can numb the pain while I do this," she said absently, "or else Doctor Law can administer a local anaesthetic. I'm no doctor and have no knowledge of how to properly determine the dosage of such things."

"How would you go about numbing the pain, Fox-ya?" Law asked, recognising her slightly abstracted state as a variant of the 'teaching mode' so many of his medical instructors had adopted while engaged in their practice.

"It's a matter of interrupting the signals from the nerves in the skin before they reach the spine," Fox answered, "Very useful in preventing a patient from screaming in agony and ruining your ears."

"The spine rather than the brain, Fox-ya?" He had noticed she had specified that the numbing effect was for the comfort of the surgeon, not the patient. How charmingly sadistic.

"Reflex action is governed within the spinal cord; preventing pain from reaching even that far prevents involuntary muscle spasms."

Law had known that reflexes were governed from the spine but he hadn't realised that topical anaesthetic could prevent involuntary muscle movement. "How did you become such a knowledgeable anatomist, Fox-ya?"

Fox looked up from her work, on hand planted flat on Jean Bart's shoulder blade while the other held a scalpel in gloved fingers. "The person who forced me to eat Devil Fruit was delighted to learn that I could keep people alive just by touching them, as it enabled him to pursue his amateur interest in anatomy through vivisection. I learnt quickly, as he made me put his subjects back together afterwards so they could go back to serving his meals and doing his washing."

Ouch. That was considerably worse than he had expected. "How old were you?"

"Thirteen," Fox said, now keeping her eyes on Jean Bart as she neatly sliced open his epidermis without more than lightly scouring the dermis beneath. That only the merest trace of blood surfaced in the wake of the blade showed her expertise. "I learnt to numb pain very quickly, as said person disliked having his ears assaulted. The trick is to deaden the pain receptors so that the patient can still feel what you are doing without experiencing discomfort; not being a doctor, I feel feedback is critical in making sure I am doing the right thing so I prefer my patients to be conscious while I work."

An admirable sentiment, though being able to feel someone rummaging around inside you sounded like a highly effective psychological torture. "How long did those, ah, anatomy subjects survive?"

"They frequently committed suicide after the fourth or fifth round," Fox said blandly, putting down the scalpel and running her ungloved hand over the square she had just outlined. "The pregnant women in particular never survived giving birth even if they made it that far."

Law now understood why Fox was so paranoid about being examined in her delicate condition. What she described had to have happened during her missing years, so before she was fifteen. "What happened when you were fifteen?"

Fox gave him a flat look. "I had a psychotic break and killed a lot of people," she said bluntly. "Temporary insanity; too much stress I assume." She peeled back the top of the skin she'd outlined and gripped it firmly between her fingers. "Brace yourself, Jean Bart."

There was a sucking, ripping sound and the square of skin peeled away to hang from her hands, leaving a red, raw patch of bare tissue where the brand had been. Fox put the skin down in a tray and pulled off the glove, both hands glowing as she placed one on his back beside the wound and let the other hover over the skinned tissue. "Let me know if this hurts," she said, face a mask of concentration as skin spontaneously regenerated both from the edges of the wound and the middle, joining halfway without as much as a scar.

"There," she said, stepping back. "Finished."

Law moved closer to examine Jean Bart, pulling on a pair of surgical gloves and examining the freshly grown skin. He might have to extract a few samples later so he could determine the exact mechanism by which she'd regrown the epidermis.

"That'll be tender for a day or two," Fox warned him as she washed her hands in the sink on the far side of the room. "Can I go now?"

"Feel free," Law said absently, mentally going over what he intended to add to her file and a few leads he could follow up. He also had some new ideas for striking fear into the hearts of the public which would be interesting to try. Vivisection with only a local anaesthetic so that the patient could see what you were doing sounded like it could be fun; he would kill his victims afterwards though. He knew he was a bastard but even bastards had standards.

"Goodbye then Doctor Law; I will see you in four weeks' time at three in the afternoon."

His nose tingled briefly and then the assassin was gone.

* * *

Ace looked up in relief as Fox reappeared next to him in the dojo where he was practicing stances. "What took so long? You locked down pretty hard about half-way through; we were worried." Zoro had tried to pretend he wasn't, but it was impossible to deceive people who wandered through your mind every single night.

"Doctor Law wanted me to remove a tattoo from one of his crew," Fox said shortly. "Then he asked a whole lot of invasive questions I didn't want to answer."

"But still answered anyway?" Ace guessed, turning around so he could hug her. It was odd having her feel so small after years of being the shorter one, but he liked it. He could pick her up much less awkwardly now.

Fox snuggled into him, her cheek pressed against his chest. "Yes. Not fully of course, but he has the bare bones."

Ace lifted her up so he could kiss her properly. "I love you, Kitsune," he murmured.

She sighed, wrapping her arms around his neck. "I love you too, Kajin. Anything interesting happen while I was out?"

"No; come on, let's go to bed." It was stupidly early in the morning, after all.

* * *

Fox awoke rather late and to the feeling of Swift Hunter nudging her mind. Groaning, she crawled out of bed and shoved her feet in her boots so she could go and investigate. Emerging on deck she found a flying fish letter case waiting for her: her mother had sent her a priority request. Accepting the note and scrambling back down the ladder, Fox shambled into the kitchen and rummaged around in the cupboards until she found something that appealed: a glass of fresh lime juice and a jar of pickled olives and garlic. She'd never liked pickled anything before, but now they just seemed so delicious!

"You're eating those?!" She glanced up to see a vaguely green Ace watching her from the doorway. "I thought they were in there as a joke!"

"Yassop gave them to me; his wife craved vinegary things when she was pregnant so he made sure I had plenty of pickles just in case," Fox said, spearing another garlic piece and popping it in her mouth. "My mother has a request, so we won't be stopping for longer than it takes to resupply, I'm afraid."

"A request?" Ace repeated, retrieving the leftover cooked meat from the fridge and digging in. "Why are you doing it if it's just a request?"

"My mother doesn't give orders: she asks nicely," Fox said dryly, "but that doesn't mean you have much of a choice. Haki savant, remember? We have to go if she's got enough of a bad feeling about this to send me an express message when she knows I've got so much on my plate already."

"Where are we going then?" Ace asked.

"Punk Hazard."

* * *

The other half of the second check-up; Molly Garce 16's interest inspired me. But now Fox and Ace have a mission...


	99. Pieces

**Pieces**

Ace hovered over the deck of Swift Hunter, his legs below the knee fully intangible and hot enough to keep the rest of his body floating without flames emerging from the rest of his skin. His palms were also on fire, but that was more for stability than buoyancy. They were a full mile off the shore of Punk Hazard, an island they'd only found because Fox had a chart that made it possible to navigate the way there using Log Poses for Mystoria and Dressrossa to calculate the route. Punk Hazard lacked a magnetic foundation, so no Log Pose would ever point to it.

"Why are we here again?" he asked as another distant explosion ruffled the waves around them.

"We are here because mother asked us to be Kajin," Fox said patiently, "and she'll recompense us for making the effort even if it turns out to be unnecessary."

"We've been here for two days and they're still fighting!" Ace whined; he was bored. Aokiji and that bastard Akainu were duking it out in the middle of the island of Punk Hazard and the fight's effects could be felt even a mile out at sea, but Fox wouldn't let him wander off for a closer look even though he could practically fly now.

"Since I don't get the impression they're going to stop any time soon I could bake a cake," Fox offered, putting her knitting away.

"Chocolate cake?" Ace asked, spinning to face her with a hopeful smile.

"Chocolate cake if that's what you'd like, Kajin," Fox said pleasantly. "I think I'll eat my share with umeboshi."

Ace made a face. Uuurgh!

* * *

Fox had just finished icing the cake when a massive shockwave blasted into Swift Hunter and she dived sharply, throwing Ace, Fox and the cake into the end wall of the kitchen that had abruptly become the floor. There was a crash and a clatter as the utensils in the covered sink rattled around and everything in the cupboards shifted to account for the change in the gravity. Fortunately Fox had caught the plate the cake was on, so as she landed next to her lover on the now horizontal wall it was still intact.

"What just happened?" Ace asked, rubbing his head.

"Swift Hunter responded to a threat," Fox said, settling the cake on the wall and feeling out her connection with her ship for more details. "There was a really big explosion on the island and everything suddenly got very cold, so she dived out of the way of the effects. Is still diving out of the way, in fact; when we get to the sea bed she'll see about getting closer." She produced a knife from her sleeve. "In the meantime, the cake won't eat itself."

"Gimme!" Ace said, eyes sparkling as she cut him a generous wedge. As they both made inroads on the still-warm chocolate cake the room gently righted itself to the sound of shifting and rattling.

"Now do you understand why I keep everything in cubbyholes and racks rather than on shelves and why the sink has a lid?" Fox asked, getting to her feet and placing the remains of the cake on the table.

"I knew Swift Hunter could swim, but I didn't realise diving could be like that," Ace admitted. "In a normal kitchen everything would have spilled all over the place."

"She only does that in emergencies, but in that kind of situation you don't want broken glass and spilled food everywhere, do you?" Fox pointed out. "Diving _is_ usually more gradual and smooth, but she is a Sea King so up and down are considered perfectly viable directions while underwater."

"Do you think the fight's over?" Ace asked.

Fox paused, expanding her senses up and out. "Well, they don't seem to be fighting anymore," she conceded slowly as her lover absently picked up the last slice of cake. "Sakazuki is still moving but Kuzan isn't; I think he lost."

"So what do we do?"

"We wait for the victor to leave," Fox said firmly, "then we go and investigate."

"_I_ will go and investigate," Ace countered in between bites. "You're supposed to be being careful, remember?"

Fox sighed. "Fine. But you'll stay in full Logia form won't you?"

"Sure thing Kitsune," Ace promised easily, licking his fingers clean before leaning back against the kitchen wall and sticking his hands in his pockets. At their last stop he'd bought some loose black trousers that he liked and wore them tucked into calf boots like Pops had done. Unlike Pops however his boots were as black as his trousers and he'd found a tattooist who'd inked an Ace of Spades onto his left shoulder where the ASCE tattoo had once been. There was a letter S left uninked in the middle of the design; his memorial to Sabo. He hadn't found a hat yet, but he would.

Ace liked how he looked in full Logia form: his body became flickering blue-green flames, making him rather ghostly considering how his eyes darkened and faded into shadows. He looked pretty creepy made of greenish flame and wearing black trousers and boots and Ace knew a top hat would finish off his new look perfectly. He wondered briefly what his new nickname would be once he started raising hell again.

* * *

Kuzan lay on the frozen ground where he had fallen after his defeat, unable to move and quietly grateful that his Devil Fruit enabled him to numb the pain of his injuries. He had not wanted to become Fleet Admiral but he had utterly abhorred the idea of Sakazuki attaining the rank, so he had been willing to fight his fellow Admiral to the death over the position. However he had lost, Sakazuki had for some reason decided to spare him and he had been left lying on the ice of one-half of Punk Hazard, the island having been broken apart by their battle.

He could not countenance the mockery that Sakazuki would make of the marines; could not work under a man whose ideal of justice was so blindly destructive. He would rather resign; he _would_ resign, as that was the only way he could really protest Sakazuki's promotion now.

Kuzan tensed as he sensed someone approaching at high speed through the air from behind him. Injured and exhausted he might be but he was still an admiral. He waited to see if the newly-arrived individual would attack.

There was a hiss of melting ice, an abrupt rise in air temperature and a soft whistle. "Ow, that looks _nasty_," the stranger commiserated, the pitch of his voice suggesting he was on the large side of normal. "Hey, are you awake?"

Kuzan opened his eyes. The fiery green apparition hovering next to him grinned.

"You are! Good; need a lift back to Sabaody?"

Kuzan frowned. This was highly unlikely, but he found he didn't care. "Who are you?"

The apparition scratched his head. "Eh, call me Spadille," he said lightly, "I don't feel like sharing my surname with a stranger." The green fire receded from his upper body, revealing a broad-shouldered man rather shorter than Kuzan himself with fair skin, indigo hair and amber eyes. "Can you limp or should I carry you?"

Kuzan levered himself into a sitting position and instantly realised why Spadille had asked 'can you limp' rather than 'can you walk': his left leg from just below the knee was entirely gone. He was tired, his injuries were many and he found he was not concerned with dignity at this point.

"I think it would be faster if I let you carry me," he admitted.

"Okay," Spadille said, his startlingly open face not showing an ounce of pity as he dropped to the ground with a crackle and a hiss, then knelt so as to wrap Kuzan's left arm around his neck. His skin was incredibly hot; Kuzan wondered if this was the newest eater of the Mera Mera no Mi or if there were other fire-related Logias out there. His rescuer than wrapped an arm around his middle, slipped the other under his knees and stood up again easily, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

"You're Ice, right? So this might be uncomfortable," Spadille warned him as his feet burst into bluish flames, floating them above the ground.

"I will manage," Kuzan said calmly, though it really was uncomfortable. The man was like a furnace.

"Good, 'cause here we go!" Spadille warned him with a grin and then they were suddenly flying through the air. The angle of travel was however not what Kuzan had expected: Spadille was angled with his back towards the ground and his head tipped sideways and up to look upside-down at the landscape beneath them. A moment's reflection however led the Admiral to deduce that Spadille's back was also on fire and that this position had been chosen for its' stability, given that he was holding Kuzan cradled against his chest.

"Why were you here?" Kuzan asked. Spadille glanced at him.

"Pearl sent us; something about a bad feeling," he said over the rushing wind.

Kuzan nodded. He'd always suspected Pearl was more than just a teahouse owner: no mere businesswoman could ever hope to attract and hold even for a few seconds the attention of a man as dangerous and indifferent as Dracule Mihawk. Dracule Lisska was another indicator, as she was half her mother and easily as dangerous as her father. More so perhaps, as her father was utterly direct while his daughter could weave her words and intentions with such precision and skill as to deceive even the most careful of men. A skill the young lady had likely inherited from her mother, who played the pretty ornament so well yet had such laughing, knowing eyes.

Pearl had sent this stranger to see the outcome of his fight with Sakazuki and to assist him if necessary, so he would see what she wanted from him when they reached the Archipelago; he owed her that much.

* * *

Why they went to Punk Hazard explained. Oh, and some Kuzan, 'cause he's interesting.


	100. Awkward

**Awkward**

Sharing Swift Hunter with Fox had been easy to adapt to, pleasant and highly enjoyable for Ace. Sharing the submersible, semi-sentient vessel with Fox and an Admiral was however cripplingly awkward. The first problem that emerged was that the small ship only had one bedroom and one bed. Fox thankfully was able to solve this by producing a hammock and bedding from the hold and setting up a place for Aokiji to sleep on the main deck, as the largely empty room with the hatch that connected to the outside world was called. The second problem was that the admiral was almost ten feet tall: Swift Hunter had relatively high ceilings throughout so as to improve airflow, but while an eleven-foot clearance is fairly generous for a person only slightly more than six feet tall and perfectly acceptable even for someone who is eight feet tall, Aokiji –Kuzan, Fox had said his name was– found the space rather cramped. Ace was guiltily grateful that the man was injured and wouldn't want to move around much; being in close quarters with someone who'd tried to kill him and _would_ try to kill him _again_ if he recognised Ace was wearing on his nerves. Never mind that it was strange to see Fox tending to someone who a little over a month ago he had watched her repeatedly try to kill.

The third problem was that Kuzan seemed to know Fox rather well and on seeing her had addressed her as 'Dracule-chan', then asked her if the Straw-Hats had disbanded. Ace hadn't been expecting an _admiral_ to know that his lover was a Straw-Hat when the Marines seemed to believe the Angel of Death and Dracule Lisska were two completely different people. Fox hadn't actually answered Aokiji's question, saying instead that she'd been in the New World since leaving Sabaody and had no idea what Luffy or his crew were up to. Kuzan had nodded, then told her that Sengoku had resigned his position as Fleet Admiral following the World Government's decision not to publicise the escape of numerous prisoners from the sixth level of Impel Down to prevent losing face. He had nominated Kuzan as his replacement, but several other high-ranking officials had nominated Sakazuki. The crippled admiral admitted he wasn't interested in being Fleet Admiral, but stated that the very idea of Sakazuki running the Marine Forces had been so abhorrent to him that he had been prepared to accept the promotion. However he had lost the battle and so intended to resign.

Fox had let the ice Logia speak, nodding in the right places as she soothed his burns as efficiently as possible and deadened the nerves that would previously have connected to his now-missing leg. When he finally ran out of words –by which point Ace had gained considerable insight into both the Marine infrastructure and the varying states of decay of most officers' morals– Fox gave the soon-to-be-ex-admiral a considering look and spoke:

"Kuzan-san, you have noticed I hope that my mother likes you?"

"Pearl-san is always very welcoming when I visit the Flashing Fins teahouse," Kuzan said, naming Fox' mother's more reputable establishment that was located in Grove seventy one, right next to the Marine base on Sabaody. "She is a most conscientious host."

Fox smiled slyly. "Kuzan-san, my mother _likes_ you. She sent me a message asking me to detour to Punk Hazard because she was worried about you. Please take this into consideration when you are deciding what to do with yourself after you tender your resignation."

Ace watched the admiral's slow blink through his lover's eyes as her words registered. "I had not noticed," he admitted.

"My mother is highly gifted at dissembling; I am unsurprised that she managed to hide it from you," Fox said candidly. "That she was _always_ there when you were should have been a clue though; my mother does have two different businesses to run in addition to her many other investments."

"Thank-you for bringing it to my attention, Dracule-chan," Kuzan said quietly, shifting in the hammock.

"You need to rest, so I will leave you to it," Fox said mercifully, leaving the deck towards the kitchen, where Ace happened to be lurking. "Dinner should not take me more than an hour; I'll have Spadille bring you your share."

* * *

It took them four days to reach Sabaody with Swift Hunter swimming as quickly as she was able; very good time indeed. Ace however sincerely wished it could have taken less time as all three people on board were twitchy and ragged around the edges by the time they surfaced at the edge of Grove sixty to drop Kuzan off so he could get into the Marine base. The admiral had worked out how to use his Devil Fruit to make himself a prosthetic lower leg out of ice, so he did not need to be helped into the base; a small mercy. Once he had left Fox had Swift Hunter take them to Grove twenty two, then promptly fled into the ship's bedroom, threw herself face-down on the mattress and just lay there, tension gradually fading from her mind and body. Ace flopped down next to her; neither of them had slept very well since bringing Kuzan on board.

"Your mom really likes him?" Ace asked after a while, turning on his side and pulling Fox into his arms.

"I think she might love him," Fox admitted quietly. "She gave up on my father years ago, well before he even made us go back to Fishman without him; I think about when I was two, but I'm not sure. She's had a lot of lovers since and she cared for some of them at least a little, but I'm certain she was never in love with any of them. Kuzan though…. she does care about him very much. I think he likes her too actually, but being a Marine admiral means certain obligations and maintaining a particular image. I hope they can work it out now."

"You're fine with how that might turn out?" Ace couldn't tell how she felt; her feelings on the subject were very complicated and bounced around all over the place.

"I want my mother to be happy," Fox said quietly. "My father is happy; he enjoys his solitude, enjoys the freedom of the sea and enjoys his strength and skill. My mother enjoys her work and loves looking after all her people but I can tell she'd be happier with a special someone in her life even if that special someone wasn't actually a lover."

So Fox didn't much like the idea of her mother liking the soon-to-be-former-admiral, but would put up with it for Pearl's sake. "What are we going to do now, considering we're in Paradise?" Ace asked instead.

"Well, since we're here I thought we should stop by and see my mother," Fox said, "then we can check up on my caches on this side of Fishman. It will also give me a chance to visit my father and see Zoro."

Ace knew that Fox missed Zoro terribly despite the asura's regular invasion of their mental space, particularly when they were physically intimate. Ace would have objected to it, but the triple sensory echo caused by their third's mental presence when he was touching Fox felt too damn good to pass up. Ace was no stranger to good sex, but sex with Fox was the best he'd ever had –the mental bond amplified _everything_– and not even Asura's blatant, shameless voyeurism could dampen the sheer ecstasy that was sex while all three of them were mentally 'present'. The first time he'd experienced it he thought he'd died and gone to heaven, it was just that incredible. He knew he'd been giggling like an addict on a trip for almost an hour afterwards but couldn't really bring himself to care.

There hadn't been much sex while Kuzan was on board Swift Hunter with them; the ship was _not_ soundproofed and both of them had been too tense to really be in the mood. They'd made the most of early mornings but it had been quick, mostly quiet and more a matter of satisfying urges than having fun. Ace intended to make up for that as soon as possible.

"Will Mihawk even let you see Asura, considering he's supposed to be learning? Discipline and all that?" Ace asked.

Fox shivered. "He should allow it, but it will be _only_ this once," she whispered unhappily, "which is why I want to do it before I really start showing." She was showing now, just: a faint curve of her abdomen that was mostly invisible under her clothing. Much more noticeable was that she had gone up two cup sizes and couldn't close most of her shirts at the top. That side-effect of pregnancy Ace really liked; her obsession with eating rice pudding, honey and umeboshi for breakfast he could have managed happily without, never mind that her sense of taste proclaimed the dish delightful. He would have been happy _not_ knowing that combination could be considered pleasant under the right circumstances.

Sensing that he'd brought up something that was making Fox unhappy, Ace leant down so he could kiss her and ran a hand up her back under her shirt. "Even if you only get to see Asura this once in person until the two years are up he'll still haunt us both every hour he can spare," the flame Logia reminded his lover ruefully. "He's shamelessly persistent like that."

Fox huffed in amusement, her own hand moving to tease the hair at the nape of his neck. "So, so true Kajin; I warned you he was insatiable."

"No more than you are, Kitsune," Ace countered teasingly, "and I'm not exactly reluctant myself. Speaking of which," he leant in to nip her lower lip playfully, "since we have the ship to ourselves again…"

Fox giggled and rolled on top of him, hands moving to unbutton her shirt. Ace took over, kissing her again as he did so. Now he could really make her scream without worrying about waking someone up!

* * *

Aftermath of 'rescuing' Kuzan. Swift Hunter is a very small ship: just eight rooms, one of which is the hold. It has no windows, no upper deck, nowhere to retreat to that is really isolated from the rest of the craft. Hosting someone you consider a potential enemy in such a small space is therefore stressful.


	101. Observation

**Observation**

After a month of having Roronoa Zoro as his student Mihawk knew there was little of the young man he had not yet seen. The green-haired swordsman was very straightforward and not exceptionally intelligent, but he worked hard, never backed down from a challenge and had truly excellent instincts. He also had a feel and a talent for swordsmanship that Mihawk had not seen in decades, learning best when pushed to his limits. The World's Greatest Swordsman therefore kept him pressed against those limits and ensured the ambitious young man was never short of challenges. Sadly his bullheadedness meant Roronoa was frequently injured and stubbornly refused to rest until those injuries were healed, instead continuing his training until he keeled over.

Mihawk wondered sometimes why his daughter had attached herself to someone who managed to be both so hasty and so slow. Probably so she could lead him around by the nose without Roronoa even being aware of it; it seemed a common theme in women. More entertaining was his student's propensity for getting lost, even within the castle itself: Roronoa could be at one end of a straight corridor and turn down the stairs rather than walk through the door in front of him. It sometimes got to the point that Mihawk suspected it might be a curse of some kind, as the boy was more likely to get lost when he was actually trying to get somewhere than when he was just wandering about without paying attention. Nobody's sense of direction could really be that bad without outside help.

* * *

Zoro ran, not as fast as he could but fast enough to make his muscles stretch and burn. He had three more circuits of the island to do before he would be allowed to practice with his swords again and if he didn't make good time Mihawk would probably make him do another lap. The World's Greatest Swordsman was an unrelenting taskmaster, but Zoro had no complaints. He was learning much faster than he ever had before and the pain and irritation was worth it. Some of the things Mihawk made him do seemed pretty strange, but the teen was confident there was a reason behind it all.

Training himself into the ground every day was also a good way to put out of his mind the empty feeling in his chest where he missed Fox. Yes, he could mentally reach out to her whenever he wanted but it wasn't the same as her being with him and being able to touch her with his own hands. Not that he didn't enjoy it when he reached out to her in the evenings after a long day training and joined in as much as he could when she and Ace were having fun, but despite sharing the experience to the point of waking up breathless and sticky it wasn't the same as being there in person. Not that Zoro would abandon his training! He just missed Fox being there with him.

Of course, she was soon going to be _here_; Swift Hunter was back on this side of the Red Line after Fox ran an errand for her mother that involved Admiral Aokiji –Zoro had decided Pearl was a worse witch than Nami had ever dreamed of being and prayed the two never met– and was gradually making its way closer to Kuraigana as it meandered from island to island. Zoro however wasn't sure Mihawk would let him actually see his pregnant lover –she was the Shichibukai's daughter after all– so was resolutely not thinking about it, despite just _knowing_ Fox and Ace were approaching from _that_ direction. He followed the shore around the island as he ran, Fox and Ace' position like an Eternal Pose in his head that had an additional sensor which gave him a rough idea of distance. Until now he'd only known they were far away, but with them visiting a few familiar locations and seeing Fox' maps through her eyes a few times Zoro now had a decent idea of how what he felt translated into how far away she was. He also had a good idea of where Kuraigana itself was: the middle of the first half of the Grand Line, off the main routes. You could only get here by following an Eternal Pose or by being confident enough a navigator to not rely on Poses at all.

Zoro knew that last titbit of knowledge was not his own; it actually came from Ace. Ace was a capable navigator, nowhere near Nami's level at predicting weather but fully capable of getting himself to where he wanted to go in good time. Fox was better than Ace, mostly due to having seen much more of the Grand Line than he had and drawing her own maps. She _knew_ the Grand Line, had been taught its ways and quirks from early childhood and could probably have taken you anywhere from Reverse Mountain to Raftel without ever stopping at an island, except for supplies of course.

Fox had actually been to Raftel, the last island in the New World. He wasn't sure if she'd actually landed on it, but Zoro had seen in her memory the two identical Eternal Poses that sat at the back of a shelf in her workshop, gathering dust. He also knew about her ambition, one she had almost fulfilled, that she had taken on to test herself and keep herself going in the face of pain, depression and misery: at the age of sixteen, Fox had promised herself that she would create an Eternal Pose for every island on the Grand Line that had a magnetic field that could be recorded. She had also promised herself that she would make a map of all the islands in both halves of the Grand Line and the Calm Belt, whether or not they were on the main routes, including the general locations of the floating islands. It wasn't what drove her –she wasn't passionate about navigation like Nami was– but as a short-term goal it had kept her alive and moving forwards for the better part of five years. Then she had met Luffy and gotten distracted, setting aside her personal challenge in the interests of something greater.

Zoro knew he was a big part of Fox' true ambition and refused to let her down, just as he refused to let Luffy down. He _was_ going to be the world's strongest swordsman! No matter how much hard work it took!

* * *

Fox was nervous and trying not to show it. She'd only seen her father twice since their fight over a year ago –well really it had just been her shouting at him– and both occasions had been stiff and uncomfortable. He hadn't seemed to know what to say to her and she had still been hurting too badly to make much of an effort to bridge the gap. Now however she would be seeing him again for the first time in nearly ten months and all she really wanted to do was have him tell her that he loved her. Losing Laila had hurt terribly, but thinking of the woman no longer made her heart hurt and Zoro and Ace completed and balanced her in ways she hadn't even realised she needed. However, the little girl inside was still worried about what her father would say when he realised she had two lovers on top of being pregnant.

There was also the problem of her father being unbelievably observant, so there was a good chance he'd recognise Ace. He didn't care for the World Government enough to actually inform the authorities, but he would ask a lot of pointed questions she really didn't want to answer about the true extent of her talents as well as pick Ace apart to find out what made him tick. Mihawk loathed weakness –likely why he'd slaughtered her former conquests; none of them had exactly been strong– and wasn't shy about expressing his low opinion of people who failed to keep their promises or follow through with their intentions. She knew her father loved her, but she was still afraid of letting him down and he hadn't exactly hidden his opinion of her taste in lovers: even Kuzan had commented on it that time on Long Island.

Arms wrapped around her and Fox leant back into Ace' grip with a sigh, tipping her head back to look him in the eye.

"Thanks, Kajin."

"You looked like you needed a hug," he told her with an easy smile. "Are you still fretting about Mihawk?"

"He's my father, Kajin; I'm so worried about disappointing him and yet I don't regret anything that I think he'll disapprove of," Fox sighed, turning to snuggle closer into her lover's chest. "Not falling for Zoro, not getting pregnant, not saving you and tying you to me; none of it. For the first time in years I can look at myself and like where I am without needing to actually be _doing_ anything particular."

"You've no ambitions?"

Fox smiled into Ace' chest. "Silly Kajin; of course I have ambitions. But I don't feel the need to be getting on with them just to fill the emptiness within. What will be, will be: I can wait."

"You know, when I set out to be a pirate I vowed that the whole world would know my name and I would stand outside my father's shadow," Ace mused. "I think I achieved that, but then Sengoku went and ruined it for me. I'll have to start again."

"You going to make sure you stand outside Whitebeard's shadow this time?" Fox teased.

Ace poked her in the ribs, making her squeak and wriggle. "Why would I want to do that, Limpet-chan? Pops was a great man and I'd be proud to add to his legend by showing those Marine bastards and the rest of the world that his kids can be just as scary as he was." His fingers danced across her back, making her squirm. "I'm gonna make sure Pops is remembered as the beginning of something great, not just one man who can be forgotten now he's dead."

"Not until you can handle yourself, Hothead," Fox countered, poking him in the stomach. "I want you to have _mastered_ your Devil Fruit and have as good a handle on your haki as you can achieve in what time I can spare to teach you before you go gallivanting off to wreak havoc. Follow your Pops' example and don't die until you've reached a fine old age after a lifetime of pounding your adversaries into the ground, please."

Ace leant down to nip her ear. "I promise," he breathed, steam trickling from the corners of his mouth in a way reminiscent of pictures of dragons. "Now: are we there yet?"

Fox sighed. She had to fall for the ones who were never going to really grow up, didn't she?

* * *

This was a tricky one to write: it's difficult to plot without Oda's work to fall back on, yet remain true to the characters involved. I did a lot of looking back on previous stuff and difficult thinking.

Oh, and in answer to Maggie-tan's question: Fox glomped Kaku before realising he was a person rather than an actual giraffe. As Bepo wears clothes he is clearly a person -even if he is a bear- so not to be randomly hugged. Fox also really likes giraffes: she thinks they're graceful and charming.


	102. Scrutiny

**Scrutiny**

Mihawk had never expected to be a father; all he had ever wanted even as a child was to become a great swordsman. He had worked hard to become great and had eventually been hailed as the greatest swordsman in the world, but none of his training and battles and relentless hard work could ever hold a candle to the sheer effort involved in raising a child. When he'd been hunted down at sea by Pearl about a year after the Pirate King's execution and she'd handed him a six-week-old baby that blinked up at him with wide, golden eyes exactly like his own he'd known true fear for the first time in a decade; what was he supposed to _do_? But Dracule Mihawk refused to be a coward and had met this new challenge head-on, determined to excel just as he had in becoming a swordsman.

Parenting was however a baffling and inexact science that seemed to have very few rules and no real standards at all. He'd managed reasonably well while she was a baby, but as Lisska grew and started to asset herself Mihawk found himself more and more adrift. Seeing himself reflected in her was a challenge, but one he could face. It was the parts she had inherited from her mother that baffled him the most, as well as the flashes that reminded him of his own mother and something else that made him think of Shanks but wasn't. Not that Red-Hair _hadn't_ left an unfortunately indelible impression on his daughter; Mihawk was actually grateful for his daughter's easygoing attitude, though he could have managed without her wicked sense of humour. She had her mother's perceptiveness and instinctively knew _exactly_ where people's sore spots were and how hard to prod them. Most people thought Mihawk was unflappable, but the truth was fatherhood had gone a long way to inure him to life's inevitable surprises.

Her disappearance at the age of nine had terrified him, and learning that she had been taken by one of his fellow Shichibukai had almost tempted Mihawk into renouncing the title in order to kill Donflamingo. However the mocking blond seemed oblivious to the World's Greatest Swordsman's connection to the girl he had lifted off the street and sold somewhere, so Mihawk had let it lie, swallowing his rage and waiting patiently. He wanted his daughter back more than he wanted revenge, so he would wait until he had reached his first goal before pursuing the second.

It had taken several years for Pearl to determine by process of elimination that Lisska was probably in Mariejois, and another two long years before she could find definite proof, years in which Mihawk wandered the Grand Line terrorising all and sundry. Then one of the ruling families had been massacred and Spitfire had arrived on Pearl's doorstep one night with news that his daughter had dropped off the Red Line and was currently on Mystoria. He had wanted to find her, bring her back to his newly established home on Kuraigana and not let her out of his sight again but Spitfire hadn't let him. The irritating mermaid had looked him dead in the eye and told him his daughter was a fragile mess, barely able to keep herself together. If he tried to push her now she would just break and that would be it and she might never recover. Mihawk had been furious, but he had backed off until she returned to Fishman Island eight months later and he had seen her for himself for the first time in nearly seven years.

Seeing a tall, slim teenager with stark white hair, a slightly softer version of his face and the graceful movements of a trained killer had not been what he was expecting; it had hurt to know that his little girl had grown up and he hadn't been there. Her reserved wariness and incredible care in picking her words spoke volumes about her past experiences and Mihawk had again felt the urge to hunt down Donflamingo and kill him. He hadn't done it though; he was better placed to help his daughter where he was. He had arranged for her to be apprenticed to a Pose Artificer when she expressed an interest in the profession, chased after her whenever something set her off and she ran away –generally straight to Shanks for some insane female reason– and did his best to ensure she was busy since he could not secure her happiness for her and busyness at least kept her from depression. Despite her frequent disappearances she finished her apprenticeship in record time, agreed to continue studying Fishman Karate with Jinbe then promptly got a ship of her own from somewhere and vanished. Aged just seventeen and a half. Since then he'd only seen her a few times a year and mostly heard about her through third parties, but he'd still tried to be a good father. However looking back on her reactions he seemed to have gone from one failure to the next, the regrettable accident with her last lover being the final straw which had led to her punching him in the face –which he felt was far less than he had deserved– and threatening to kill him. He'd stopped trying after that and hadn't really seen her since.

However now he was standing on the threshold of the castle he had made his home, face to face with his estranged daughter who was looking at him nervously while behind her a tall, broad-shouldered man with Fire-Fist Ace' face was watching him critically.

"Lisska," he said quietly. "Daughter. What brings you here?"

She bit her lip, eyes darting all over the place. It disturbed him to see her like this, her façade shattered and the frightened child that had lost everything she knew aged nine left exposed for all to see. Then her shoulders slumped.

"Can't a girl visit her father without having an ulterior motive?" she asked plaintively, not meeting his eyes. The man who was probably Fire-Fist glared at him; Mihawk suspected the youth thought he should be doing something to comfort her.

"I have missed seeing you," he admitted, "but felt that you might prefer me to keep my distance."

Lisska glanced up at him from under her lashes. "I did," she agreed, "but that was then."

"Am I forgiven then?" His assumptions regarding her love life had been the most costly mistake of his life.

Lisska closed her eyes. "I forgave you back on the Moby Dick shortly after you admitted it was an accident and apologised," she said softly, "but looking at you still hurt for a long time afterwards. It doesn't hurt now though." She wrapped her arms around herself. Mihawk recognised _this_ cue, though he hadn't seen it since she was eight. He immediately walked over to her and hugged her close, resting his forehead against her hair.

"You are my daughter and I love you," he said quietly but firmly, "and I never wanted to hurt you. All I have ever wanted is for you to be happy."

Lisska trembled, gripping his shirt and burying her face in his collar. Mihawk did not let go of her even as he felt his shirt getting wet, looking over her head to meet the eyes on the man who had come with her. The stranger mouthed 'mood swings' at him with an apologetic shrug; her tears were not then a sign of true loss of composure, but a symptom of her pregnancy. Mihawk wasn't sure if that was better or worse. He knew however that once Lisska had calmed down he would let her see Roronoa, if only so he could observe the two of them together. He would also have to interrogate her companion; Fire-Fist had been mortally wounded when he vanished from Marineford and the Word's Greatest Swordsman knew that his daughter could only heal mortal wounds through binding her patients to herself as Roronoa was bound. He wanted to know the exact nature of the reckless pirate's relationship with Lisska; he had seen them together before and knew they were close, but Mihawk wanted to ensure Fire-Fist would not endanger his only child with further foolishness such as that which had led to his arrest and near-death.

* * *

A whole chapter of Mihawk! I can't believe it! He's so reticent and difficult!


	103. Wordless

**Wordless**

Mihawk was seated in his usual place in the main hall with his daughter and her friend just to his left when Roronoa walked through the door and went straight over to where Lisska was sitting as though drawn on a string. Lisska herself rose to her feet as the young swordsman approached her and closed her arms around the younger man as he walked right into her and buried his face in the crook of her neck, his own arms folding around her waist; Roronoa clung onto her as though afraid she might vanish. Fire-Fist, who had introduced himself as 'going by Edward D. Spadille now: I got properly adopted' did not move from where he had been leaning against the side of Lisska's chair, instead dropping his eyes to the floor and letting green fire dance between his fingers in an absent-minded fashion. After a few long moments of just standing there and holding onto Lisska Roronoa stepped back and let go, his arms sliding away to grip her hands firmly in his as he raised his chin to look her in the eye. He did not, however, speak. Instead Fire-Fist –Or Spadille, since he could not refer to the younger man as 'Edward' without bringing Whitebeard to mind– let the fire fade from his fingers and walked around the back of the chair to put a hand on each of the couple's shoulders.

As the taller young man's hands came into contact with bare skin all three stilled completely for an instant before letting go of each-other and stepping back in a movement so effortlessly synchronised it made Mihawk frown; he knew very little about what his daughter was capable of but could tell that this, whatever it was, was important. The three then moved as one back to the chair, but this time Spadille sat down first and Roronoa and Lisska sat next to each-other on his lap, all acting as though this was normal when Mihawk was almost certain the two men had never met before.

"Now that all the relevant parties are present," Mihawk said dryly, "Would you care to explain the situation, Lisska?"

His daughter looked thoughtful and Spadille raised an eyebrow while Roronoa merely slumped backwards against the larger man's chest and shut his eyes.

"I bound myself to Zoro because I didn't want him to die," Lisska said simply. "I bound myself to Ace because my captain ordered it, not that I regret obeying that particular order. I might well have done it anyway; Hothead's always been important to me." Above her head the man who had been declared dead smiled fondly, moving a hand to rest on her thigh. "As a result we're mentally connected to each-other, all three of us. When we're asleep we wander through each-other's dreams and memories at random and while we're awake we can communicate mind-to-mind."

"Is that all you can do?" Mihawk sincerely doubted it.

"No," Spadille drawled. "We can also watch the world through each-other's eyes and even take each-other over provided we don't mind the side effects."

"Loss of self," Lisska provided without prompting. "Too much overlap and we would lose track of who we are and what our limits are. We're settled now though, so that shouldn't become a problem unless we actively try to hurt one-another."

"Which would be dumb," Spadille followed on.

"Because it would just echo back and we'd all suffer," Roronoa added. "We're stuck like this until we die so we may as well get used to it and make it work."

Mihawk abruptly realised that his pregnant daughter was not just Roronoa's lover now and that the brash, headstrong swordsman didn't actually care. That pragmatic acceptance was so at odds with the young man's usual fiercely combative attitude that Mihawk had to stare.

"All three of you are involved together?" he asked, having to hear it said.

Spadille coughed. "More like Asura and I are involved with Kitsune here, but yeah, we're all an item," he said with a grin. "Not my doing, I swear: I tried to stay out of it but Kitsune wouldn't take no for an answer."

"You could have turned her down," Roronoa pointed out, not opening his eyes.

"Could _you _have?"

Roronoa went slightly pink. Mihawk didn't want to know what was being shared in the silences between the words, but guessed that the younger man had been in constant contact with the other two in the past months despite the physical distance separating them.

"Don't tease Asura, Kajin;" Lisska said chidingly, "or at least don't do it out loud. I'm sure my father doesn't want to know what we get up to behind closed doors."

Mihawk assuredly did not. The trio's use of nicknames and their easy familiarity told him quite enough.

* * *

Perona wasn't sure why the white-haired woman Hawk-Eyes had introduced to her as his daughter gave her the screaming heebie-jeebies but couldn't get within arms' reach of the other woman without shaking in terror. Thankfully she didn't have to be that near at the dinner table. Her nagging fear however gradually faded as she watched Zoro and the two newcomers eat, her fascination overtaking her nerves. How did they _do_ that?

Zoro was sat to Spadille's left and Lisska was in Spadille's lap, something Mihawk had seemed irritated by but hadn't tried to stop. A large number of plates loaded with all kind of food were spread in front of the trio, each of whom had chopsticks gripped in their dominant hand while the other hand grabbed cups for drinking out of, moved plates or picked up joints of meat to eat directly. However the chopsticks lifting food to Lisska's mouth frequently belonged to one of the men, just as Lisska's chopsticks were often putting morsels into the mouths of the men, who were also feeding each-other. They never looked at each-other either; the intricate dance seemed to be directed by some kind of hive mind that ensured that Spadille's hand reaching for the meat was just high enough to avoid Zoro's chopsticks as he put some kimchi in Lisska's mouth, who in turn was pouring more sake for Zoro and lifting a takoyaki ball up over her shoulder into Spadille's mouth. Then Lisska put the next ball of takoyaki in her own mouth, Zoro downed the sake he'd been poured and Spadille unloaded three joints of meat onto the swordsman's plate before tipping the remaining five onto his own, and biting into one, his chopsticks snaking out seemingly of their own accord and snagging some of the steamed fish, holding it sideways for Zoro who ate it even as he put his cup down and chewed as he offered a chunk of meat in fruit sauce back up to Spadille with his chopsticks and held Lisska's cup of fruit juice to her lips with his other hand.

Realising she'd stopped eating her own food to stare, Perona quickly returned her attention to her food, sneaking glances over at the three-headed, six-armed conglomerate that was laying waste to the lavish feast Lisska had cooked. She also glanced up to the head of the table to see how Hawk-Eyes was taking the display. He was frowning, but that was normal. Less normal was the way he was rubbing his temple with one hand as though fending off a headache. Then enlightenment struck and Perona had to take a large mouthful of her meal to prevent herself from squealing in delight: Boring, straightforward Zoro was actually in a threesome with Lisska and Spadille! It was so cute! No wonder he'd been desperate to leave until he got that message from his Captain in the newspaper! Oh, and Lisska was pregnant too and Zoro had said it was his baby! The three of them were just adorable together! No wonder Hawk-Eyes had a headache; he was cold and mean and boring and his daughter was engaged in a steamy romance with two different pirates at the same time! But Zoro was here learning to be a better swordsman because his captain wanted him to, which was terribly honourable and obedient when he had two people he would much rather have been spending time with out there, never mind that the woman was pregnant. Oh, and she was Hawk-Eyes daughter too! She wouldn't have dared go _near_ the Shichibukai if she'd been him but Zoro had bowed his head and begged to be taught.

Perona decided then and there that she would make sure Zoro didn't do anything stupid that would prevent him from rejoining his lovers when the two years were up; she owed it to herself to ensure such a cute trio stayed together!

* * *

Mihawk gets his facts cleared up and Perona decides the trio are 'cute'. The horror. We also get to witness the surreality that is Fox, Zoro and Ace eating together.


	104. Wonder

**Wonder **

From the moment Zoro had walked into her and buried his face in her throat Fox had been bludgeoned by his heavily suppressed emotions: joy, relief, desire, worry, passion and wonder. When Ace had accidentally made skin contact with both of them something had clicked into place and settled, suddenly easing the bonds and sense of connection. It was like having a move work perfectly in a spar after months on end of gruelling practice and corrections and tears of frustration. She could still feel what Zoro was feeling, but she now automatically recognised the feelings as belonging to Zoro, just as she could tell what Ace was feeling distinct from both herself and her swordsman. It was a bit of a shock to be so clearly defined after months of muddlement but also a tremendous relief.

Then Zoro had to go back to his training and Fox commandeered the kitchen to keep herself from moping, drafting Ace to help with the chopping, mixing and watching the things in the oven. She let him snack –expecting otherwise was futile– and made sure there was no shortage of meat: the flame Logia was working very hard on his coordination and fitness in Swift hunter's dojo and, due to the slight elasticity of his metabolism that was a holdover from the intense healing he'd been through, was gaining strength and muscle tone with alarming speed. Fox knew that residual efficiency would fade soon, forcing Ace to work harder to maintain the same rate of improvement, but doubted that would stop him. Keeping busy was the main issue in a ship as small as hers that could steer itself and Ace didn't really have any hobbies, so he trained instead. She'd already started him on a few haki exercises, the ones her mother had taught her when she was seven. Being older and more focussed it probably wouldn't take her lover the eighteen months it had taken her to access and control the Colour of Observation; once he had a basic grasp she would teach him the exercises for the Colour of Armament and get him to at least consider the possibilities of the ways the three main 'Colours' could be adjusted and twisted for other purposes.

* * *

By the time dinner came around Fox had stopped feeling miserable and was instead impatiently looking forward to the end of the day so she could have a proper reunion with her asura, no matter how short the time together they would have. She was not therefore concentrating overly much on the meal other than to ensure she was eating in a balanced manner; neither of her lovers were particularly attentive either, seeing food as fuel and good food as an indulgence to be made the most of. Her father's slightly irritated question as the last serving dishes were cleared therefore came as a surprise.

"Do you always eat like that?"

Fox blinked and actually paid attention to how the food was reaching her mouth, realising her own chopsticks were holding noodles for Ace, who was steadying a bowl of Udon so Zoro could finish the broth whilst the swordsman's own chopsticks were supporting the chunk of tofu she was about to chew. She quickly caught it in her mouth as Zoro noticed what was going on and there was an instant of disorientation before her asura decided he didn't care what anybody else thought and finished his broth. Above her Ace accepted the proffered noodles with a mental hum of delight and chewed slowly, sufficiently full to be interested in savouring the last remaining morsels.

"It generally happens unless we're actually paying attention," Fox admitted. "Eating takes forever to straighten out, partly because of the group mindset."

"Group mindset," her father repeated with a faint frown.

"Ensuring everyone in the group is properly fed is just as important to each of us as feeding ourselves," Fox clarified, "unlike personal things like Zoro's swordsmanship and Spadille's Devil Fruit training, so things get a bit blurry. I think being pregnant makes it worse."

"It does," Ace agreed. "I get echoes of your cravings when you go too long between meals, and the things I think I want to eat aren't actually anything I can bring myself to try."

"Is that why you dragged me out of my workroom and gave me that bowl of condensed milk with mango chunks and beni shoga yesterday?" Fox asked curiously; she'd been utterly absorbed by her work and hadn't realised she was hungry until the food was right under her nose. It had tasted delicious. Ace shuddered; so did Zoro and Mihawk.

"Yes, that is why. I put that together and then realised there was no way I'd ever eat it, which meant it had to be _your_ craving," Ace said sulkily. "I couldn't think of eating anything else until you'd finished it."

"Sorry," Fox offered sheepishly.

"Next time you try to work through lunch I'm not going to even let you start," Ace said firmly. "Bad enough that your taste buds have been corrupted by pregnancy without them subliminally trying to convince me that pickles taste good with everything."

"But right now they _do_," Fox protested.

"We know," Zoro said repressively. "That's why we gave you most of them; they taste much, much better when you eat them. Same as meat tastes better when we have it; I never thought Sea King could taste _bad_ until you accidentally had some that time while you were sailing to Sabaody."

Fox remembered that; she'd almost thrown up. She'd never liked the taste of Sea King but could eat it in a pinch; now the flavour made her gag. The smell was fine though, interestingly.

At the other end of the table Perona squealed, abruptly drawing the attention of the other four diners. "You're all so _cute!_" she gushed, hands clasped under her chin as she gazed starry-eyed at Fox, Zoro and Ace. Both men shifted uncomfortably and Fox caught a faintly amused huff from her father.

"Kajin and I cooked, so someone else can do the dishes," Fox said quickly, getting to her feet and catching Zoro by the hand. "Perona-chan?"

"Yes, Lisska-san?"

"Thank-you, Perona-chan!" Fox chirped, dragging both her lovers out of the door at speed. As they dashed down the corridor there was an outraged squeak; Zoro sniggered all the way up the stairs to the room her father had set aside for her.

* * *

Ace detached himself from Fox at the bedroom door. "You two catch up without me first," he said with a teasing grin, "I'm going to explore a bit."

Zoro's face managed to both light up and darken wickedly; he hustled Fox into the bedroom and shut the door before the pregnant woman could voice a protest. Chuckling, Ace wandered away down the hall, looking for a large, enclosed space that didn't show any recent signs of habitation: he wanted to practice flying indoors, so he could work out how it affected the available air. He had experience of how large fires pulled in air and wanted to find out if he could harness that or at least predict how his powers would make it happen and when. Spending time with Fox had taught him that control was more important than power; it didn't matter how amazing your abilities were if you weren't using them properly.

Ace doubted Blackbeard would bother to harness his abilities properly; the man seemed too hung up his own perceived omnipotence. Fox' outlook however was that by knowing yourself, exploring your abilities to the fullest and keeping an open mind you could defeat anyone regardless of their power levels. Ace _liked_ that philosophy and intended to make it his own, so he was experimenting. He knew Fox was right –having her rattle off a list of ways she could kill or incapacitate a person of his choosing without resorting to her Devil Fruit had been enlightening– so it was just a matter of practicing. Sitting on the floor in the middle of a large hall at one end of the building, Ace left the door to the corridor propped open and started to play.

One of Fox' first lessons had been not to limit himself to battle techniques; she'd given him a list of scenarios and had him think of ways he could use his Devil Fruit to improve them. Ace was interested in finding out if he really could be used as a makeshift forge, or whether he could weld with his hands, but for now he intended to experiment with his floating. Namely, how hot did the flames really have to be for him to float, and was there a difference if he was fully Logia or just partly? He thought there _should _be, but with Devil Fruit 'should' did not always apply.

He paused to wall Fox and Zoro out more thoroughly before continuing; he didn't want to blow through the roof of the castle by accident because they'd caught him by surprise.

* * *

As soon as he'd shut the bedroom door behind them Zoro immediately attacked the buttons of his lover's shirt, backing her towards the bed; he'd been wanting to do this all week. Fox let him to wrestle with her clothing, her own hands running over his face, neck and every other inch of exposed skin on his upper body, paying particular attention to his scars. As her knees hit the bed frame and she sat down Zoro finally managed to remove her shirt and picked her up bodily, laying her flat on her back and kneeling over her thighs as his hands gently and carefully ran over her slightly raised abdomen where _his_ child was growing inside her. He'd never expected to be a father but seeing Fox like this made him determined to be a good one.

"Mine," he breathed, sliding his body backward so he could lie down on top of her legs and get a closer look. It was just a slight change in the curve of her abdomen but it felt much firmer under his hands than before and there were other, more subtle changes in her body that leapt out at him after their ten weeks apart. She smelt slightly different for one, but that might be due to her keeping close company with Ace. She was also softer and curvier, not out of shape but putting on additional weight on top of the muscle. Her breasts were definitely larger too and he could feel her higher heart rate through her skin. Not all of that was natural; Zoro smirked up at Fox over her naked stomach, enjoying the faint flush on her face, her slightly hoarse breathing and how her eyes had darkened until there was only a thin ring of gold around the pupils.

"Beautiful," he said sincerely, loving how the flush darkened and her breath hitched as he caressed her abdomen. Her hands were now fisted in the sheets as she watched him with an apprehensive intensity that he had missed so, so badly. Crawling up over her he settled his knees back beside her hips, lifted her upper body off the bed and kissed her soundly, his hands wandering around her torso to loosen the bindings keeping her chest in place.

"Missed you Asura," she whispered against his lips, her hands running up his arms to grip his biceps. He shared the sentiment, projecting back all the tangled emotions that having her here with him inspired.

"Hmm," she crooned in agreement, shivering as he turned his attention from simple enjoyment of her physical presence to more intimate and pleasurable things. Zoro knew he didn't have much time with his lover and intended to make the very most of what he had; he doubted either of them –or the Kajin for that matter– would get much sleep.

* * *

Catching up and a little bit of each of the trio.


	105. Heritage

**Heritage **

Ace was hovering in midair in the hall he'd chosen to train in, concentrating hard on controlling his body temperature and the range of the heat he radiated –which was the really hard part– when he gradually became aware that he was being watched. Looking around, he immediately saw that Hawk-Eyes was standing in the open doorway and eyeing him critically. Ace unfolded his legs and dropped to the floor, taking care not to scorch the stone slabs.

"Spadille," Mihawk said coolly, "I trust you will not be engaging once more in the kind of thoughtless foolishness that led to your arrest?"

Ace winced. He had deserved that. "I'm not going to leave Fox alone while she's pregnant," he promised, "not if I can help it. Blackbeard can wait and now I'm not the only person who wants his head on a platter; I'm not even the first person in line." The first person in line was Tempest, who for all her calm pleasantry believed vengeance should be thorough and properly thought-out with the victim fully aware of the reason for their plight even as their world crumbled around them. By the time she was through with Teach he might welcome death in order to get away from her.

"And after the child is born?"

Ace scowled. "She was my best friend before this happened and even if things hadn't changed I'd _never_ abandon her when she needed help. Raising her kid is going to cut in on everything else she does and I'm going to make sure no-one tries to take advantage while she's distracted."

"You are unsure of your abilities, poorly trained and barely aware of your limits," Mihawk noted with brutal accuracy. "How could you possibly protect her when you can barely care for yourself?"

The flame Logia gritted his teeth, making sure his power remained under his skin. Losing control now would just prove the swordsman right. "I know all that," he spat, "but I'm working on it. The only way anyone's going to try to hurt Fox is by going through me first."

"Will you always be at her side?"

Ace scowled. "No; she doesn't want me to be. She's not weak and doesn't need me to treat her like she's made of glass. But I will be there so that if she does need me I can help." He glared at the father of his lover. "That is what family is for."

Mihawk frowned. "You consider her family," he mused.

Ace shrugged, scratching his head. "We're practically married so yeah. Her mother's already made it very clear she considers me a son-in-law even if we never make it official." Meeting Pearl had been scary: the mermaid had an intensity to her that reminded him of Pops in a bad mood. He'd barely been able to do more than stand his ground and agree to her demands.

Mihawk made a slightly amused sound in his throat. "Why do you call her Fox when you know her name is Lisska?"

A very tricky question. "It's what she introduced herself to me as," Ace said carefully, "and everyone else on the Moby Dick called her that too, even Marco. When I did find out her name she asked me to go on calling her Fox, so I thought she just liked the nickname better."

"And now?"

Ace frowned in thought. Tricky. "She sees herself as Fox, so that's what I call her. Lisska is the daughter of Dracule Mihawk and Silvers Pearl, but Fox is the woman and assassin she's become." He paused, Hawk-Eyes' stunned expression taking him by surprise. "What?"

"Silvers Pearl?" Mihawk repeated.

"Yeah. You didn't know?" Ace did his best not to smile; it wasn't –okay, it _was_ hilarious how shocked the World's Greatest Swordsman looked by the news. But that was no reason to make fun.

"She never mentioned it," Mihawk said a little bemusedly.

"Mermaids don't," Ace commiserated. "Sometimes I entertain myself by wondering exactly how many kids Marco's got that he doesn't know about." Marco was very responsible and serious on board ship but he was a real player off it and loved mermaids even more than the average pirate. The mermaids loved him back for some reason, so every time the Moby Dick had stopped by Fishman Island Marco had rarely come back to the ship to sleep, if at all. There were always at least two seeing him off when it was time to leave again, usually four or five and sometimes more.

Mihawk actually smirked. "He has at least three daughters that I am certain of," the swordsman said with a hint of humour in his tone, "and they are currently fourteen years of age. He likely has more that are older and younger than that."

Ace contemplated for a moment how Marco would react if someone told him he had three teenage daughters. Teenage _mermaid_ daughters: young, pretty, flirty and scantily clad. The phrase 'running around like a headless chicken' came to mind.

"How do you know about those three?" Ace had to ask.

"I met Marco when I went to fetch Lisska from her babysitters' apartment on Fishman Island one morning upon learning her mother was busy," Mihawk said blandly. "He was cooking breakfast and telling my daughter a story about something someone on his crew had once done. Lisska was six; her three babysitters were in their early twenties and not in evidence."

Ace choked slightly at _that_ as a first impression. Yeah, all the Whitebeard Pirates knew Marco loved women, but three mermaids? All at once? With a kid asleep in the same house? Damn. "So the missing babysitters all wound up pregnant?" he guessed.

"Two of them did," Mihawk said dryly. "One of them had twins; Lisska was thrilled."

Twin teenage mermaids. Marco would have _kittens_.

* * *

Ace returned to his thoughts of Marco's reaction to finding out he had teenage daughters three days later when he and Fox had left Kuraigana Island to peruse more safehouses and later attend her next check-up with Trafalgar Law.

"Fox?"

"Yes?" his lover replied, not looking up from the top she was making. Now she had started to show Fox had decided to make herself some clothes that would fit properly as she continued increasing.

"Do you know how many kids Marco has on Fishman?"

She glanced up at him. "Is that idle curiosity speaking?"

"Um, yeah?" Ace admitted.

"Here," she shoved a large coil of rope at him. "Knot yourself a new hammock while we talk."

Ace accepted the rope and set about the mindless task of turning, knotting and shaping that he could probably do with his eyes closed.

"You asked about Marco," Fox said, her eyes back on her work. "I've known him since I was six. I'm not entirely certain of the number or identity of those of his offspring around my age or more than ten years younger than me, but I do know that in the three years I lived on Fishman he visited five times after our first meeting. On one of those later occasions Jinbe was looking after me, but on the other four my mother had left me with babysitters. On each of those four occasions Marco hunted me down to catch up, play games and have fun, and with the benefit of hindsight I can now say with certainty that he seduced every single one of my babysitters that he met. Considering my mother had me being looked after by between three and seven different mermaids whenever she wasn't there, that's a lot of conquests."

Ace grunted an acknowledgement, tightening a knot. It was a lot of women.

"Of course my babysitters were likely as eager to bed him as he was to bed them, but that's not relevant really," Fox continued. "Four times he visited me, four times he seduced my babysitters, not including the first time. Only once –the time I'd been left with four mermaids in their late teens– did none of the babysitters wind up pregnant. On all the other occasions at least two of them had a baby nine months later; that includes the first meeting, incidentally."

Ace whistled. "Damn. Is he just unlucky or did the mermaids do it on purpose?"

Fox smirked. "Smart Kajin! Do you know the mermaid-to-merman gender ratio?"

"No?"

"It's five to one; five mermaids to every merman. The fishman-to-woman ration is two to one but there are less of them anyway, so even then it doesn't balance out. For every married mermaid there are two or three who can't simply because there aren't that many males to go around. So what do those single mermaids do if they want to have children?"

Everything fell into place in Ace' mind. "They sleep with a passing pirate and hope they get lucky?"

"Well, there's a bit more thought and care in the selection process than that, but basically," Fox agreed. "Mermaids who want children often offer to babysit other mermaids' kids for experience and to stave off the yearning, so you can imagine how delighted they were to meet a strong, good-looking pirate who was good with kids and perfectly willing to seduce them."

Ace sniggered. Poor, ignorant Marco had been shamelessly taken advantage of. "How many then?"

Fox frowned. "Two pregnant the first time and three daughters between them: fraternal twins and a single. Four the second time: three girls and a boy. None the third time as I was with younger girls who took steps to prevent pregnancy, being in the experimental stage rather than wanting to settle down; I know he was the first man at least two of them had ever had sex with. Fourth time I was with Jinbe so I have no idea who he stayed the night with. Fifth time three pregnancies, five babies: identical twin girls, fraternal twins –a girl and a boy– and another girl."

Ace did some quick mental arithmetic. "So Marco has at _least_ twelve kids, probably a whole lot more," he said, not sure if he should be awed or worried. "That's a _lot_ of kids."

"After they realised Marco would visit me whenever Whitebeard was on the island my mother got a lot more people willing to babysit me," Fox said dryly. "It took me a while to make the connection."

Ace laughed. Marco had been suckered into playing stud by a bunch of mermaids! "Is he ever going to find out?"

"If he asks," Fox said lightly, her own amusement clear. "I'm sure you've noticed that quite a lot of the mermaids your age and younger are blonde, strawberry blonde or pink-haired."

The flame Logia had to put aside his work as he was laughing too hard to continue it. "Please," he gasped eventually, "please Limpet,_ please_ say I can be there if he does ask and you tell him!"

"If I am the person he asks, Kajin, you are free to eavesdrop if you aren't there in person," Fox said equably, her needle dancing along a seam. "He is more likely to ask Tempest though, as she is the mermaid he will be seeing the most of."

"Can you ask her to warn you and maybe let you come along?" Ace begged. "Please Kitsune-koi?"

Fox hummed thoughtfully. "Well, I could, since it does involve me peripherally and I know some of them quite well," she mused, "but it depends if he ever actually asks and, if he does, when said request occurs. I'll mention my interest to her and see how it goes."

"You want to see his face too, don't you?" Ace challenged her, picking up the rope again.

"Oh yes," Fox admitted candidly. "I also want to see the rest of your crew's faces when they realise the implications."

Ace cackled evilly. He'd always been careful to make sure his mermaid conquests knew that he actually _wanted_ to know if they wound up pregnant and had gone out of his way to pick the girls who _didn't_ want kids yet. But then again, he'd been forewarned by Spitfire. Not that he'd ever shared that warning with his brothers, of course; where was the fun in that?

* * *

The implications of getting involved with mermaids.


	106. Inspiration

**Inspiration **

Law walked briskly through the small port town the Heart Pirates had stopped at to resupply, headed back towards his submarine; buying medical supplies had taken longer than he expected, though the quality was excellent and the range of available merchandise was truly surprising. He would never have considered seeking out medical provisions in such a backwater place had it not been recommended to him through the Sea Network, which was likely the point of the outlet being here. However he had been forced to leave the loading up and transport to Bepo, as it was rapidly approaching the agreed time when Fox was due for her medical check-up and he had many more questions to ask.

"What's the rush, Doctor Law?"

The Surgeon of Death paused in the middle of the street, suddenly aware of the pregnant woman in a kimono who had just stepped out from under the shelter of a shop front. "Fox-ya," he said coolly. "What a surprise. What brings you to such a quiet island as this?"

The assassin smiled at him, her paper umbrella shading her from the weak autumn sunshine. "I am checking the state of my investments, Doctor Law; just passing through."

Law guessed the well-stocked medical depot he had just visited belonged to her; her father's Shichibukai status would make acquiring those kinds of supplies fairly easy. "A coincidence, Fox-ya?" he said, voice blandly mocking.

"No such thing, Doctor Law," Fox admitted agreeably, "I heard you were in the area and felt here was the best place to meet you. Did you know there is a medical facility here as well?"

Law had not. That she was volunteering the information however was highly suspect.

"Oh?" he said lightly. "Is it open to the public?"

"That depends on who you consider the public to be," Fox replied, wandering closer and placing a hand on his arm, "but if you are interested I'm sure I could get you inside. They might even lend you an examination room for my appointment."

"I would still need my notes, Fox-ya," Law noted dryly.

"These notes?" the assassin said mildly, producing a folder from one of her voluminous sleeves. Law took it off her and opened it; they were indeed his notes of her medical history. All of them. He paused to consider the current circumstances.

This whole situation was obviously bait, but very good bait. Irresistible, in fact. He trusted Fox not to want him dead so long as he remained her doctor and acted appropriately as such, so this was likely a ploy to distract him from asking personal questions. "Lead the way, Fox-ya," Law said, bowing slightly in recognition of her masterful play. Fox smiled at him, gently leading him down a road parallel to the docks and away towards the hills at the edge of the town.

* * *

Ace did not like leaving his Kitsune with the Surgeon of Death, but recognised she was perfectly capable of looking after herself. Pulling his new hat down to shade his eyes, he hooked his fingers into his new belts where they crossed over his hips and strolled down the road towards the submarine that belonged to the Heart Pirates. The crew would likely want to know where their captain had gone, so he may as well wait there for his lover to come back rather than anywhere else.

"Hey! Who are you?" Ace glanced over at the submarine he'd stopped next to; there was a man in a cap with pinkish red hair standing on the deck. The flame Logia smiled.

"I'm Spadille," he said cheerfully, swinging himself over the rail and on board. "Don't mind me; I'm just waiting on my charge." Mihawk had actually helped Fox establish a proper background for Edward D. Spadille based on the basic paperwork Pearl had provided: he was now officially a Hawk-Eye Pirate –the _only_ Hawk-Eye Pirate in fact– and his job was to protect the daughter of his 'boss' while she was pregnant and later nursing her child. This would leave Ace only about eight months to make a splash in once the baby was weaned, but he was fine with that.

"Your charge?" the Heart Pirate repeated suspiciously.

"My boss' daughter's here for a medical checkup with a Trafalgar Law," Ace said easily, leaning back against the wall of the submarine's fin and letting his hat slide forward to cover the top half of his face. "She told me to wait here for her to get back. Hey, what's your name?"

"Shachi," the pirate said automatically. "Trafalgar Law? That's our captain! Who's your boss?"

Ace grinned. "Hawk-Eyes."

"What! The Shichibukai!" Shachi squawked. "Wait, his daughter? You're Dracule Lisska's bodyguard? She's here?"

"I left her with your captain just a few minutes ago," Ace said expansively, rather enjoying the other man's discombobulation, "so they're probably heading up to the medical facility." The poor pirate's confusion was the funniest thing he'd seen all week.

* * *

Law had to admit, it really was good bait. The medical facility was apparently built into the side of the island and only accessible from the surface through the cellar of a farm belonging to a grumpy old man who had reached for a gun as he saw them coming up the road, then relaxed, turned and ignored them on getting a good look at Fox. His patient had led him right into the farmhouse, lifted a trapdoor and walked right down the steps into a stone cellar with a door at one end. Fox had placed her hand next to the door and it had opened smoothly to let them both in.

"Welcome to the Otohime Medical Research Facility and Hospital, Doctor Law," she said, waving a hand down the dimly lit but very clean corridor, "the only Fishman and Merfolk medical research facility on the planet. You'll be the first person without Sea-kin heritage to ever walk these halls."

Well after an introduction like _that_, Law could hardly turn back, could he? "I thought the Merfolk rarely strayed beyond Fishman Island, Fox-ya," he said as he stepped across the threshold.

Fox smiled. "That was true once, Doctor Law, but the latest generations proved rather more adventurous than their ancestors and wished to see more of the world and its wonders. All who live and work here do so well beyond the leadership of King Neptune and the safety of the Ryugu kingdom, falling instead under the Sea Network Protectorates."

"Protectorates?" This was valuable information, Law knew it. Most pirates had no understanding of quite how much of the Grand Line there was under the sea, but being a submarine captain Law knew there was far more space and territory under the sea than above its surface.

"You saw two of the Protectorates' rulers at Marineford," Fox said with a smile as she led him into a lift and pressed a button. "Gol D. Spitfire rules the Calm Belt Protectorates jointly with Edward Tempest. The Paradise Protectorates however are the domain of Silvers Charis, my aunt."

A lot of big names. Law had seen the refined power wielded by the mermaids who had taken part in the assault on Marineford and the subtle might of Silvers Pearl; these were not women coasting on the reputation of their fathers. "I don't suppose you want me to believe the adventurous nature of the more recent generations has nothing to do with the blood in their veins?" he inquired dryly.

Fox actually giggled. "There _was_ a surprising population boom on Fishman that started around the time of the Pirate King and reached its zenith about twenty years ago," she said sweetly. "However despite the continued higher number of births, the number of citizens living on Fishman has not changed in that time."

Meaning all those mermaids and fishmen with the blood of pirates in their veins had been steadily leaving the island and going adventuring elsewhere. How fascinating; the World Government clearly had no idea. The doors of the lift opened to reveal a large open area with wide corridors leading off in several directions and crisscrossed with canals. Fox led the way over a bridge to a desk where a woman with violet hair and square spectacles was working in front of a Den Den Mushi screen. The woman looked up as they approached.

"Lisska-dono! What brings you here?" Law raised an eyebrow at the honorific.

"I'd like to borrow an examination room so my doctor can give me my scheduled pre-natal check-up, should it be possible," the white-haired assassin said politely.

"Of course, Lisska-dono!" the secretary said, her hands flying over the controls on her desk. Law noticed she didn't seem to have recognised him; were these people not interested in following the events that occurred on the surface? "Room O-2330 is free, so I'll mark it down for your use for the next hour. Will that be enough time?"

Fox looked at Law inquiringly. "Well, Doctor?"

"Will it have the necessary equipment to hand for blood tests and ultrasound?" Law asked. The secretary looked offended.

"Of course! O-2330 has the most accurate and up-to-date obstetric facilities available!"

"Then I think two hours is more realistic, to allow for possible delays," Law said calmly, privately elated at this rare opportunity. "Could you also provide a guide?"

"Certainly," the secretary said briskly, ringing a bell and typing furiously. A woman in a nurse' uniform emerged from a door in the wall behind the desk.

"Escort Lisska-dono and her doctor to room O-2330, please," the secretary said, not looking up from her work.

"Of course," the nurse said quietly, bowing. "This way please."

Law strode after the nurse, glancing around at the décor, the signs on the walls, the humans hurrying in the halls and the merfolk and fishmen moving swiftly along the canals that took up half of each corridor's width. Large loads were pulled along in boats in these waterways, which the pirate had to admit was much faster and easier than using trolleys.

He'd have to see if he could come back here sometime; there was definitely much more here than he would get to see today…

* * *

Fox continues to broaden Law's horizons and issue subtle threats. Not that he minds.


	107. Letters

**Letters**

Dear Luffy,

Yes, I'm really not dead! I kept my promise after all, though only thanks to Fox. I don't look much like I used to though: you probably won't recognise me next time we meet. Most of my brothers on Whitebeard's crew don't even know I'm not dead and they wouldn't recognise me either. I'm also weak, clumsy and having trouble adjusting to the other side-effects. Fox says it'll pass, but I think it'll take at least a year for me to get back up to strength, possibly more.

Considering all of this, Portgas D. Ace is going to stay dead; I never wanted to be known as Roger's son and if I keep my name that won't happen, never mind that if the Marines learnt I was still around they'd chase after me to the ends of the earth and I don't have the strength right now to protect myself, let alone my friends and family. So I'm going to take a new name. I'm not sure what yet, but you can be sure that no matter what I go by you'll always be my little brother.

Don't blame yourself for what happened: it was my own damn fault from beginning to end and I'm sorry you got hurt trying to help me. Fox has been keeping an eye on you, you know, even from the New World. She's cool like that.

I promise I'll see you again when you come to the New World to win the title of Pirate King and we can fight again. If you're gonna make it to the top you can't let me beat you, so no slacking off!

Your brother.

* * *

Big brother,

I'm gonna spend the next two years training! That way I'll be strong enough to protect all my nakama properly! See you in the New World,

Luffy.

* * *

Dear Madam Pearl,

Your daughter has agreed to my being her doctor for the duration of her pregnancy and informed me I should refer to you for her medical records. I trust there will be no delay as I need to check my findings against her history in order to properly determine her current state of health.

I have also considered your offer, and am willing to agree to the terms laid out at our last meeting; I look forward to doing business with you.

Yours,

Trafalgar Law

* * *

Dear Shyarly,

Not dead yet, honest! Tempest donated and adopted me, so I have a whole lot more family now. Can you give me any advice for dealing with little sisters? I have two of them now: Edward Mermera and Symphia. Do you know them at all? I want details!

Tell Ishilly I'm really sorry for worrying her as well; I had no idea you'd Seen what happened to me at Marineford. Fox saved me, so maybe this is a sign that your predictions can be thwarted or just misinterpreted? I'm getting the impression that fate is a lot more flexible than most people realise.

Your uncle still,

Edward D. Spadille

P.S. Tempest named me; d'you like it?

* * *

Dearest daughter,

I know you are preoccupied right now with your fiery beloved and your current condition, but there is nobody else I feel comfortable asking this particular favour of. Would you be willing to travel to Punk Hazard? Kuzan-san is currently battling Sakazuki there for the position of Fleet Admiral and I have had a bad feeling ever since he stopped by for tea just before leaving.

With love,

Mother.

* * *

Dear Tempest,

How are you? I hope all is well in the Calm Belts and with Spitfire; I know she's hard to keep out of trouble sometimes. Spadille is recovering nicely and will soon be back up to his full strength and more, though his Devil Fruit is a long way from being mastered. He at least recognises that and spends time every day experimenting with his abilities and limits. I've also started him on Haki exercises; do you think you or Spitfire could stop by sometime and teach him to use the Colour of the Conquering King properly? I'm so terrible at it he probably wouldn't understand what he was supposed to do if I tried to demonstrate.

With you and the others hanging around your father's former crew, I recently realised that they were likely to start wondering if Whitebeard was the only one to have children he was ignorant of. If the matter does arise, would you let me know? I wouldn't mind making a side-trip to acquire copies of the census records I know my mother will have requisitioned from the Ryugu Archives by now, and I am familiar with a lot of the people who would be affected by the news. Spadille has also expressed an interest, mainly in being there when Marco finds out exactly how many children he has sired. How many _are_ there, anyway? I am certain of twelve and have suspicions about another ten, but I know there are probably more beyond those I am thinking of.

Regarding my continuing research into your condition, I suspect Doctor Trafalgar Law may have the necessary expertise to assist you. However, considering he is a pirate in pursuit of One Piece, I will be sounding him out very slowly and carefully so it may take some time to find out. Mother tells me he is affiliated with the Sea Network now, so I have her and aunt Charis' permission to show him the Otohime hospital and see where that leads us. I know you want your own children more than anything Temp, and that you worry this may reappear elsewhere in the family further down the line. Please don't give up hope just yet.

Love,

Lisska.

* * *

Dear Sanji,

Since you were always so interested in my letter cases you've probably already realised who's writing to you; I hope you are alright. I have no idea where you are, but I can tell you're in good physical health and training hard; remember not to overdo it! You're smarter than that!

I'm not writing just to catch up though. It turns out Zoro and I were not as careful as we might have been: when Kuma separated us I was slightly over two weeks pregnant. Zoro knew, incidentally; it just made him more determined to achieve his goal so he could protect the both of us, if you can imagine that. Of course with him training he can't be with me right now, but I'm sure you noticed that physical distance doesn't really keep us from communicating anymore.

You don't have to worry: I am being careful and eating properly, I promise! Not as well as I would be if you were doing the cooking, but well enough that my doctor has no complaints. I have also developed an obsession with pickles, which is leading me to eat all kinds of odd combinations that the people around me find quite off-putting.

Anyway, the reason I'm telling you all this is that at my latest check-up my doctor told me that I'm expecting a daughter and I'd like you to be one of her godfathers. I trust you to look after my baby should anything happen to Zoro and me, and raise her into a strong and confident woman. Please write back and let me know if you're willing to take on the responsibility; I know any daughter of mine will be a handful regardless and adding Zoro to the mix can only make it worse!

We've already decided to leave the baby with friends when the time comes to sail into the New World: our daughter would be a toddler then and need constant supervision that just isn't possible on board ship. I also don't want to find myself in a situation where I have to choose between protecting my daughter and achieving our captain's dream. I know some good people who will protect my little girl with their lives, so she will be staying with them until Luffy is Pirate King. I do however intend to bring her to Sabaody so Zoro can see her before we set off and hopefully I can introduce her to you then as well.

I have no regrets about my unexpected foray into parenthood; children are a blessing. Take care,

Fox.

* * *

Dearest Fox,

Of course! You didn't need to ask! I'd be honoured to be godfather to your daughter! She'll need a gentleman in her life to balance out the Marimo and I promise that if anything happens to either of you I'll care for her as if she were my own. I am in hell, but I am training hard and growing stronger. I wish I could be where you are to cook for you: you need the very best while in your current condition!

Love,

Sanji.

* * *

A lot of letters, starting from two weeks after Marineford up to the present. This is sort-of filler, but it provides some additional information I wasn't sure how else to include.


	108. Flight

**Flight**

Fox ran, zigzagging up the slope behind the town and relying heavily on Devil Fruit and her Colour of Observation to prevent herself from running into things or getting hit by the bullets fired by the Marines chasing her. Her eyes were useless right now: the Marine Commodore in command of the forces chasing her has tried to kill her and she had not dodged fast enough to prevent him from giving her a cracked skull even though she'd called up her Colour of Armament in time to protect her brain. If she hadn't reflexively protected herself she would likely have died then and there. The concussion had destroyed her vision, affected her balance, made her movements clumsy and interfered with her Devil Fruit Ability to the point that she had been forced to revert to her most basic offensive Ability in order to defend herself.

Breathing heavily as she slipped through a narrow break in the rocks and down the other side of the island, Fox decided this was one of the worse weeks of her life. Not the very worst, but definitely in the top ten. It had started badly and had just deteriorated further: first Kaido's subordinates and now bigoted Marines. Considering trouble often came in threes, she was dreading what was yet to come.

The worst part was that both attacks had been aimed specifically at Dracule Lisska, Hawk-Eyes' daughter; news had got out from Sabaody that she'd been the Pirate Hunter's lover and her pregnancy was impossible to hide now so a lot of people had put two and two together. Some of those people were Marines and hated pirates enough to take out their irrational loathing on someone who –as far as they knew– was just a Pose Artificer with a poor taste in men. The rest simply wanted her as leverage against her father and equated 'pregnant' with 'vulnerable'.

She paused, reaching out even as she hid herself from perception. There were Marines… there, there, there and there. The vegetation screened her from view to a certain extent but she was wearing a brightly coloured kimono and would probably be spotted soon. Thankfully she was far fitter than they'd expected and not the civilian they'd thought her when they cornered her in the street; unfortunately, they knew that too now. She'd resorted to haki in order to knock out as many of her assailants as possible before running and the Marine Commodore would by now be back on his feet, shouting orders and possibly calling for reinforcements. They weren't the only ones to have done so though: Fox had resorted to the emergency measure of sending a distress signal to her father, who she knew would respond with all possible speed and overwhelming force. Hopefully Ace would catch up with her before her father reached her, but if not he at least had a good reason for not being at her side right now.

Stumbling over some loose rocks, Fox swore quietly and staggered on down the slope, hoping they hadn't heard her. No such luck; she picked up speed again, her stride not as long as it could be due to her swollen belly and kimono.

Why had everything had to go so wrong?

* * *

Edward D. Spadille swore viciously and creatively, flying as quickly as he could towards his lover. This was quite possibly his worst week ever; at least at Marineford the only person at risk had been him. Now Fox was under fire, unable to defend herself properly and several days' sailing away. Flying was much quicker than sailing, but he was still unlikely to reach her before sunset which was far too long. It had taken him three days to ferret out and destroy every last one of Kaido's subordinates on the island the four pirate ships had ambushed them at; it would have taken less time had the island not been populated as then he could have flattened it and called it a day. Sometimes having a conscience sucked.

On realising he –or rather Fox– was the target, the first thing the former Whitebeard Pirate had done was take out the ships, reducing them and anyone still on them to ash in the wind. His experimentation with temperature had proved its worth then: the ships had practically vaporised. He'd also destroyed all the other ships in the harbour so his enemies couldn't escape and made his lover go back to Swift Hunter: since she was the target, she should escape now and he would catch up later. She had agreed and headed for an island east of them which had a small Marine base, making it an unlikely target for Pirates. It was also in Big Mom's territory, so Kaido wouldn't chase her there like he would if she sailed south or west towards more familiar islands that had been part of Whitebeard's territory and were now up for grabs.

Ace had then been left with about five hundred live targets to practice his recently expanded Ability on; he had improved quickly, made good use of his emerging Kenbunshoku haki and refined several different attacks. He hadn't even tried physical force; in Logia form he had the advantage and with Fox' wellbeing on the line he didn't have the time for anything approaching fair play. Besides, his enemies were scum who were targeting a pregnant woman, so they didn't even deserve a chance.

The last few pirates he'd caught up with had been highly skilled, but by then he'd got the hang of how to control and focus his attacks properly and had simply seared them to ash shadows on nearby walls. Fox had been right; there was far more to fire then just burning stuff. It was great stress relief after months of stumbling over things, basic training and general frustration; he finally felt strong again. Of course, he had to remember that just because he could reduce a person to so much fine powder did not make him invincible; arrogance was a leading cause of death in Devil Fruit Users. He needed to find more things he could do, preferably including something he could use defensively, no matter what Fox said.

He had left the island three days after sending Fox on ahead but barely three hours into his flight everything had gone to hell: Fox had been attacked by Marines who saw her being pregnant by a pirate as a crime and were determined to kill the unborn baby. They were perfectly willing to kill his precious Kitsune as well for defending her daughter-to-be, but despite her concussion his lover had used haki to knock out everyone within twenty yards of her and fled the scene as fast as she could. Ace had done everything he could to improve his speed, but there was a limit to what he dared to try when even the smallest mistake would result in him drowning and never arriving at his lover's side. Never mind what his death would do to her; the shock might cause her to lose the baby! He couldn't risk it. Which left him gnashing his teeth as he shot through the air like a comet towards the people trying to kill _his_ Kitsune, Asura urging him on from the back of his mind. He _would_ be in time and then everyone who'd dared so much as _think_ of harming Fox would _die_.

* * *

Six weeks later they are in the New World again and Fox is in trouble. Ace is also unintentionally earning himself the beginning of a reputation.


	109. Fight

**Fight **

Smoker paced on the deck of the G-5 Marine ship he was currently commanding, his cigars trailing thin plumes that slowly dissipated in his wake. He'd been out doing a normal patrol circuit with his new subordinates and Tashigi when the black Den Den Mushi had picked up a partial conversation between some Marines in pursuit of a criminal on a nearby island. Not much about the criminal himself had come through however as the Marines had been killed shortly after confronting him, the last one dying even as he called for reinforcements. Smoker had taken that as an invitation and had ordered the ship to make for Spinoza, where the call had originated.

As they drew closer to the island the signals picked up became clearer and the Marine Commodore had overheard the deaths of three more patrols. He had also learnt their target was not a pirate but a woman accused of collaborating with pirates. Smoker was suspicious of such an accusation: in the New World a lot of civilians collaborated with pirates to a greater or lesser extent depending on where they lived and the Marines knew it. This woman was clearly a highly capable fighter, but he'd determined that she had initially been caught by Commodore Henken and twenty Marines yet had fled the scene without actually harming anything other than the commodore's pride, in spite of being injured herself. That was not the behaviour of a hardened criminal. With this in mind, rather than sailing right to Spinoza's port he had ordered the navigator to take them around the rear of the island: this woman was trying to escape rather than fight, so they were more likely to find her far away from habitation. Smoker wondered if she was trying to protect someone.

"Commodore Smoker!" The look-out shouted. "Over there!"

Smoker hurried to the railing and snatched a pair of binoculars: indeed, there was a woman in a torn kimono with blood matting in her hair stumbling out of the thick thorny scrub that gave the island its name, her movements fumbling and her breathing heavy. The commodore stilled as she straightened up and rubbed her back, revealing the prominent curve of her abdomen; she was pregnant. Henken had attacked a pregnant woman. The White Hunter's hands tightened on the binoculars; this wasn't Justice. Henken was a hypocrite and a lecher, so this woman had likely gotten pregnant by a pirate and been found out. As she was a civilian it wasn't actually against the law for her to become personally involved with a pirate despite the ill-advisedness of such an action, but Henken clearly wasn't going to let that stop him.

The woman's slightly hesitant movements as she continued down the hill and the way she held her hands out as if to break a possible fall suggested she was suffering from a concussion; Smoker was impressed she'd managed to defend herself in spite of it. "Lower a boat!" he ordered. He would take the woman into custody and then ensure true Justice was done. This might even be enough to get Henken recalled to Headquarters for a formal reprimand, which the corrupt commodore certainly deserved.

* * *

As the boat was lowered and Tashigi joined him on deck, six Marines burst out of the scrub to the woman's left and chased down the hill after her, two of them shooting at her. They missed, the woman swaying as she hurried down towards the beach. As she stepped onto the sand she stilled, then turned like a bear at bay as her whole posture changed from prey to furious predator. Smoker had almost been killed by a mother wolf when he was younger and knew exactly how dangerous a woman with something to protect could be. He vaulted over the ship's rail into the boat and shouted at his men to hurry up; if they moved quickly enough he might be able to save a few idiots' lives.

They were almost close enough to shore for Smoker to cross the gap using his Devil Fruit when the Marines caught up with their target and rushed her. Smoker champed angrily on his cigars and frowned as she swayed between her first two attackers' swords like a reed, her hands reaching out with faintly glowing fingers to touch their faces. As she made contact with their skin both men's heads exploded backwards in a fine red mist, their bodies crumpling to the ground. The remaining Marines on the beach slowed in the face of such effortless destruction, giving the woman time to seize the nodachi belonging to one of her victims and raise it to slant across her body in a fluid, graceful manner. Beside him Tashigi stiffened; this stranger was obviously a highly capable swordswoman.

As he watched the fight unfolding before him Smoker bit down harder on his cigars: he'd seen that graceful, minimalist fighting style before only a few months previously, at Marineford. This woman wielded the oversized sword in her hand like the Shichibukai Mihawk had done during the Whitebeard War; she was less quick on her feet due to her pregnancy and less assured in her movements, but the essence was the same. He stared more closely, noting her unusual height and white hair. It was looking more and more likely that this was Dracule Lisska, daughter of Hawk-Eyes Mihawk and rumoured to have been the Pirate Hunter's lover. It didn't matter much to the White Hunter: despite her background she was a Pose Artificer not a pirate and so entitled to his protection.

Three of the remaining Marines had fallen, incapacitated by precise cuts across their joints. The last one had reloaded his gun and shot at her, but the overlarge blade in her hand rose and deflected the bullet with insulting ease. The idiot then drew his own sword and charged; Smoker leapt out of the boat and flew swiftly towards the beach. The Marine might be a fool but he was still a Marine. The woman sidestepped the charge, removed a hand from her sword and her glowing fingers made contact with the Marine's wrist, blowing his sword hand away in red mist before twirling to face Smoker as he landed on the beach, sword raised defensively.

Seeing her face to face Smoker was startled both by how heavily she resembled the Shichibukai and by her unresponsive, uneven pupils: her concussion had destroyed her vision. She had utterly obliterated five Marine patrols while visibly pregnant, blind and probably dizzy; an impressive feat for a civilian. He didn't move, crossing his arms instead.

"Logia," Dracule Lisska said aloud, tilting her head on one side. "Stubborn, strong sense of right and wrong, honourable. Smell of cigar smoke and leather." She stalked forwards, heavy on her feet and swaying slightly though the sword remained steady. Smoker calmly let her get within arms' reach and didn't flinch as a glowing hand approached his face; he'd never met this woman before but Vice-Admiral Garp had many good things to say about her, as had the recently retired Kuzan. The sword was swung backwards to rest across her shoulders as the hand brushed his face, taking in his hair, frown and the cigars in the corner of his mouth. Smoker stared patiently into fuzzy, unfocussed golden eyes, waiting for her to finish.

"Commodore Smoker," she said, stepping backwards and spinning the sword to plant it blade-down in the sand, "my apologies; I cannot afford carelessness right now."

"Dracule Lisska, correct?" Smoker asked as behind him the boat reached the beach and Tashingi jumped out, hurrying closer.

"Yes," she said, then lunged almost too quickly to follow and spun him around to face his men, the chill paralysis of Sea Stone against the back of his neck. "No closer!"

"Halt!" Smoker shouted harshly and holding up a hand, very aware of the fine tremor in the hand gripping his shoulder and the sharp point of a hairpin pressing between his third and forth vertebrae; what kind of paranoia prompted a Devil Fruit User to wear Sea Stone tipped hairpins?

"But Smoker-san!" Tashigi protested, her hand on her sword hilt as the rest of his subordinates crowded around behind her.

"That's an order, Tashigi!" Smoker roared, making his ensign cringe and step back.

"A-Apologies, Smoker-san!" Tashigi said shakily. Smoker grunted, his attention back on the woman holding him hostage.

"Dracule Lisska, would you surrender yourself into my custody until this misunderstanding is dealt with?" he asked gruffly, very aware of both the Sea Stone pressing against his neck and the pregnant woman's shaky breathing. They were both walking a knife-edge here and he rather hoped the situation did not deteriorate into further senseless violence.

"Can you guarantee I will not come to harm while in your care, Commodore Smoker?" the pregnant woman inquired quietly, her voice hard and bitter. "_Guarantee_ I will not be harmed either by your subordinates or your superiors? I'm not much inclined to trust Marines today."

I promise I won't let anyone hurt you while this situation is being straightened out," Smoker said firmly. The chill of Sea Stone vanished and her hand on his shoulder slipped down to his bicep and pulled him around so he could look her in the eye.

"I place myself in your_ personal_ custody then, Commodore Smoker," Dracule Lisska said coolly, "until either this situation is resolved or my father comes for me; he assigned a bodyguard to me upon learning of my condition and insisted I inform him should I run into difficulties. My bodyguard was separated from me during an ambush by Kaido's forces several days ago but I sent my father a message as soon as I got away from Henken so it shouldn't take him many days to get here."

Smoker gritted his teeth but said nothing; this 'bodyguard' was likely a pirate and he would have to deal with an angry Shichibukai as well. Another thing to blame Henken for.

"Very well," he said as civilly as he could manage, placing a hand under her elbow so he could lead her forward. "This way please."

Dracule Lisska let him lead her over to the boat and load her into it, though she took care that he was always between her and his men. She didn't speak again until they had almost reached his ship.

"I trust your honour, Commodore Smoker," she murmured for his ears only, "but I have no faith in either your men or your superiors, so anyone other than you straying within arms' reach does so at their own risk. I will not tolerate any further threats to my child."

"Acceptable," Smoker grunted, recognising this was as he was going to get from his current charge. Privately he didn't blame her for her caution; G-5 was not a safe place for any woman to be, let alone an injured, pregnant woman with personal ties to pirates. He didn't want her straying out of his sight either.

* * *

Fox runs into Smoker; Alowl inspired me to write this, so kudos!


	110. Convergence

**Convergence**

Mihawk had left Roronoa strict instructions on what to do for the next month before leaving Kuraigana to wander for a while; the World's Strongest Swordsman was not a person who enjoyed staying in one place for any amount of time, not even when he had something interesting to do. He had been at sea for a little over a week when the shrill cry of a Meteor Harrier rang out overhead, startling him from his doze and awakening a sudden sense of dread.

Meteor Harriers were native to the Grand Line, so named for their incredible turn of speed and irritating habit of preying on News Coos, the only other birds that travelled freely up and down the world's most unpredictable sea. Meteor Harriers were much rarer than News Coos, but his daughter had found a nesting ground once and coaxed one away, raising it and eventually binding it into one of her hairpins as an emergency measure. The hairpin worked like her letter cases did, taking on animal form and then travelling directly to its destination when required. However being a hairpin nothing could be carried by it: its mere presence was a sign that something had gone badly enough wrong that she needed immediate assistance.

The bird dive-bombed him, whizzing over his hat and losing its form just before it hit the deck of his raft to leave a jade-topped stiletto vibrating in the wood. Mihawk's jaw tightened. His daughter was in the New World; he'd have to travel through official channels to the new Headquarters in order to make the best possible time.

* * *

Ace arrived on the island of Spinoza an hour after sunset, knowing that Fox wasn't there anymore. However he knew that she was moderately safe right now despite being in the custody of a Marine Commodore –the same man who'd tried to arrest him on Alabasta coincidentally– so he could see to other things. Things like eating, sleeping and interrogating the bastards who'd tried to kill her. He also needed to see a chart so he could work out how far away the Marine base she was being taken to was and in which direction it lay. Sure, he could follow the tug in his mind that told him that his lover was over _there_, but the ship she was on might be following a current or not travelling directly to its destination. He couldn't afford to make mistakes, so he needed a plan.

The plan was simple: sleep somewhere quiet and out-of-the-way, eat –and run as he didn't have any money– then break into the Marine base infirmary and 'persuade' the few survivors of his lover's escape to tell him what the hell had happened. Fox hadn't been too sure of events herself, being badly concussed, and the flame Logia wanted all his facts in order for when Mihawk inevitably arrived and interrogated him. He would also get them to tell him more about this Smoker guy and where he was based. Then he would leave, possibly after stealing an Eternal Pose for the island Smoker's base was on. He wouldn't go out of his way to kill people since he was technically serving under a Shichibukai right now, but he fully intended to dish out as much pain and property damage as possible so as to hammer into these Marines' thick heads that doing this kind of thing really wasn't on. Not that he didn't _want_ to kill every last Marine on the island: he was really, _really_ angry about what that commodore had done to his precious Kitsune, but she didn't want him to make a mess so he wouldn't. Letting one of his fingers glow red-hot, Ace thought about what he could do to that scumbag without resorting to murder. His feral grin would have made any sane person run screaming.

* * *

Fox sat in Smoker's cabin in his battleship, a glowing hand lightly covering the bleeding wound on her head. Now that she could sit quietly and focus her attention exclusively on her injury she could work through the fog of her concussion to soothe the damage and knit the cracked bone together again. Not that she had left herself entirely defenceless: her hairpins were lined up next to her free hand –all of them sharp and two of them Kairoseki– and her Colour of Observation was running on automatic and keeping her informed of everyone on board, their strength and their nature. Smoker wasn't in the cabin with her but on deck bellowing orders; he had locked her inside in the interests of her own safety.

She felt a little bad in taking advantage of Smoker's strictly honourable nature but there hadn't been much else she could have done after he arrived on the scene. Killing him and those with him would have been a waste –his ensign had a good heart for all she lacked resolve– and he wouldn't have let her run away. At least this way her father would find her more quickly, as the White Hunter was certain to report her presence and condition to the Marine Headquarters.

As she worked on her injury, taking her time so as not to make careless mistakes while her mind was clouded, the cabin door opened and Smoker stepped inside.

"Do you need to see a doctor?" he asked her.

"My Ability enables me to mend as well as break apart, Commodore Smoker," Lisska said calmly, allowing the parts of her that made her the daughter of Hawk-Eyes and the Storm to come to the fore. "Given time and rest I will be well soon enough." She did not say that she wouldn't trust any doctor attached to the Marines even if her life depended on it; she'd sooner send herself to Trafalgar Law and place herself at his mercy.

"You mentioned an ambush by Kaido," the White Hunter said, moving to sit opposite her on the chair closest to the tray containing rocks sitting on a low table between them. "Where did it happen?"

"Smokestack Island," she told him shortly, most of her attention returning to sealing the cracks in her skull.

"How long ago?" he asked, reaching out to set one of the rocks in the middle of the tray and then picking up another one.

Lisska thought about it. "Nearly four days now. We stopped there for supplies and were cornered by four ships belonging to Kaido's fleet. Spadille destroyed their ships and made me leave as I was their target. We agreed to meet up on Spinoza as it was the nearest island that Kaido wouldn't follow me to, seeing as it is within Big Mom's territory."

Smoker grunted, balancing the rock in his hand on top of the one in the tray and picking up another one. "Spadille is your bodyguard?"

"Yes. He's my father's subordinate."

"I didn't know Hawk-Eyes had subordinates."

"I think Spadille's the only one; my father acquired him about two years ago." Spadille's cover story marked him a survivor of the Punk Hazard disaster. "He's a Devil Fruit User and very protective of me." It also encouraged people to believe he had a completely different Devil Fruit power to the one Portgas D. Ace had demonstrated, a fiction Fox had supported by taking the time to forge a Mera Mera no Mi based on Ace' memories. She had successfully transferred the Devil Fruit Curse –if not the associated powers– to it and then given it to her mother to leave somewhere or sell; she didn'treally care what happened to it now. What she had created using her own Abilities was essentially a 'dud' Devil Fruit that would simply curse the eater with all of the disadvantages and give their life-force the peculiar swirls that made Fruit Users so easy for her to spot.

"Acquired?"

"I didn't ask."

"I've never heard of him." Smoker's tower of rocks was five high now and the roll of the ship had yet to unbalance it; Lisska was impressed. Her vision was also returning at long last so she could just about see her surroundings.

"My father makes him keep a low profile, although killing Kaido's subordinates and finding out why I'm not on Spinoza anymore will likely bring him to the Government's attention," she said dryly. "My wellbeing comes first however so my father probably won't reprimand him for it."

Smoker grunted again, waiting for the ship to settle before adding a new rock to his tower. His presence was calming in a way Fox associated with Jinbe: someone who would protect her with everything they had, but not someone she felt physically comfortable with. She would probably manage to fall asleep with him in the room, but that was it. She'd felt the same around Kuzan, interestingly. Garp was too loud and brash to affect her that way, though she certainly liked the man and intended to let him know his adopted grandson wasn't as dead as he might have been as soon as she could think of a way to do so that wouldn't compromise Ace' new identity.

"Why were you being targeted?"

Lisska snorted. "You want a list?"

Smoker glanced over at her. "If you would, Lisska-san."

She huffed. "Fine. In order: I am obviously my father's daughter, so people wanting to get back at him occasionally come after me in an attempt to get some kind of indirect revenge. People wanting leverage against my father also come after me from time to time, Big Mom and Kaido in particular. Whitebeard was either too honourable to do so or just didn't care; Shanks has a history with my father so he doesn't bother. Blackbeard will probably try and hunt me down sooner or later once he's consolidated his power base." She paused to let this sink in. "Being a Pose Artificer also makes me a valuable asset and all manner of pirates and other, more covert kinds of criminal have tried to capture me over the years to make use of my skills. Then there are the people who just look at me and see a pretty face all alone and try to take advantage. This was all before I was pregnant, by the way. In my current condition everyone trying to kidnap me has gotten more persistent as they see me as being more vulnerable than before –which I am– and now some Marines have joined in the fun, seeing my taste in lovers as an affront to their sensibilities and my determination to protect my child as a crime." She sighed, closing her eyes. "I can't help who I fall for and my baby is innocent. I also cannot help who my parents are and have done my best throughout my life to make choices I can live with afterwards. I was forced to learn to defend myself from an early age due to the hostility brought against me for things beyond my control and though regret every death I cause, I refuse to die simply because others feel I do not deserve to live."

Smoker didn't say anything more, but Lisska hoped she had given him plenty to think about.

* * *

Events progress.


	111. Gatecrash

**Gatecrash **

Bright and early in the morning on the New World island of Spinoza, Edward D. Spadille made his displeasure known to all and sundry by reducing the front gate to the island's Marine base to vapour and ballistic molten spatter. Striding inside in full Logia form and radiating heat like a blast furnace, the simmering pirate made his way calmly across the yard and through the front door. He ignored the men trying to shoot him whose bullets were reduced to misshapen, molten lead before they even reached him, ignored the panicked shouts of the petty officers as their men fainted in the intense heat and ignored the two-inch-deep footprint-shaped craters of molten slag he left in his wake; none of that was really important.

"H-h-halt!" squeaked a trembling Marine as he coolly walked right through the steel-reinforced, triple-barred door in a shower of ash and molten metal. Spadille paused and turned to look at the man.

"Which way to the infirmary?" the eight-foot-one apparition asked, thumbs casually hooked over his belts but with a distinct edge to his voice.

"Ah?" the Marine gibbered, hands shaking so badly he could barely aim his gun. He squeaked again as the vicinity to the Flame Logia made the weapon's powder spontaneously combust.

"The. Infirmary?" Spadille repeated, eyes hooded and teeth gritted. Flares burst from his shoulders ominously and the air temperature rose another twenty degrees.

"Ah! Left wing! S-s-second floor! Y-y-you c-can't miss it!"

"Hn." The walking firestorm turned and set off down the corridor to his right at a steady pace, the paint smoking and peeling from the walls and ceiling as he passed and the cement bleaching and cracking under his feet. Behind him the marine he'd just intimidated collapsed in a dead faint. Spadille casually upped his heat output as he made his way deeper into the building, causing doors to spontaneously combust, light fittings to explode and boiling the water from the fire sprinklers into chocking, scalding steam. Screams of terror soon rang out all around him as the fires spread, smoke and steam rose from broken windows and Marines tried desperately to escape the spreading conflagration.

He strolled into the infirmary without bothering to open the door, calmly brushing the ash from his top hat as he looked around at the seven men cowering in their beds. Two had what looked like training injuries; them he ignored. Three had been crippled by cutting wounds to their joints and the sixth was missing his hand and about two inches off the end of his forearm. The seventh man looked like he'd been brutally beaten, so Spadille ignored him too: he'd probably been 'disciplined' by his senior officer.

"Greetings," the flame Logia said bitingly, briefly whipping off his hat and bowing politely. "I am called Spadille and I am looking for my charge. I believe you have seen her?"

"Charge?" one of the men with training injuries asked as the three cripples and the man with only one hand cringed in unison. Spadille grinned, unhooking his hands from his belt and stretching with his fingers laced over his head.

"Dracule Lisska, Pose Artificer," he said with a sadistic smirk. "About so high, white hair, six months' pregnant? Looks a lot like her father Hawk-Eyes?" Two of the four cringers started trembling uncontrollably and one of them passed out; the last one lost control of his bowels. "Ah," the Logia said with a terrifying smile, "so you _have_ seen her. Care to share with the class, gentlemen?"

"I-I-I" one of the tremblers stuttered. Spadille walked closer, compressing his aura so as not to affect the room more than by scorching the ceiling, cracking the tiles beneath his feet and raising the air temperature by a mere fifteen degrees.

"Do tell," he purred, leaning over the man's bed and casually reducing the metal frame under his hands to a custard-like consistency.

"!" the man managed before pissing himself and passing out. Spadille frowned.

"That won't do," he muttered, poking the unconscious man's arm with a glowing golden finger. His victim awoke instantly with an agonising scream, clutching at the third-degree burn he had just acquired and rousing the man who had fainted.

"You were saying?" the black-clad pirate prompted, absently examining his nails.

"She was here," rasped the badly beaten man on the end bed. Spadille turned around to face the speaker.

"Then why isn't she _still_ here?" he asked, his demeanour suggesting that he had a good idea already and was just going through the formalities.

"Commodore Henken ordered us to arrest her," the man replied, coughing up bloody spittle. "Then he hit her over the head with the butt of his rifle. She didn't go down, he tried to kick her in the stomach, missed and then she knocked everyone out somehow and legged it." Another cough. "I recognised her and refused to give chase, so Henken beat me up. She wiped out four six-man patrols, two out of the last patrol and crippled these four before Commodore Smoker from G-5 showed up and took her into custody. No idea what happened after that."

"So these four," the Logia waved at the four maimed and panicked men, "attacked my charge? My _pregnant_, _civilian_ charge?" He turned to frown at them. "How… unjust. Hawk-Eyes will be very displeased; he may even file a complaint." The man lying in a puddle of his own shit made a keening sound in his throat. "Maybe I should spare you the experience." Green-blue fire condensed around his fingertips. "Nah. I'm not that nice." The fire faded. All four terrified Marines burst into noisy tears.

"Get a hold of yourselves," the beaten man rasped disgustedly to his comrades.

"So, Mr Helpful, where can I find Commodore Smoker?" Spadille asked with a cheerfully manic grin.

"G-5 Marine branch, Lookout Island," the newly-dubbed Mr Helpful grunted. "There're charts in the main dispatch room and Eternal Poses to the major Marine bases."

"Thank-you; where's the main dispatch room?"

"Primary tower, first floor opposite the Commodore's office." The flame Logia bowed, whipping off his hat and holding it over his heart.

"You have my gratitude; I'll mention it to my boss." He then replaced his hat, turned and sauntered out of the empty doorway, whistling eerily as he turned up the heat again and the ceiling caught fire. "Try not to die before then."

* * *

How's that for a debut?

For the record, Spadille wears baggy black trousers tucked into black leather boots that end halfway up his calves, two belts that cross over at the front -and back- and a black top hat _exactly_ like the one older-Sabo is wearing on the front cover of Chapter 596. He's got an Ace of Spades tattoo on his left shoulder with an 'S' in the middle and looks like he's made entirely of white-gold fire. His eyes and the inside of his mouth are heavily shadowed while in Logia form, making him look a bit like a reverse jack o' lantern.

No shirt, of course; he doesn't wear shirts.


	112. Collision

**Collision**

Smoker snarled at the men training in the yard for their sloppiness and half-hearted attitude, biting down viciously on his cigars. He'd got back this morning after four days at sea; four stressful, irritating days in which he had lost five of his underlings to their own overwhelming and insubordinate stupidity. Dracule Lisska had been a model prisoner, rarely straying from his office except to sleep in his cabin –he'd spent the nights on the couch in the office– and visit the small private bathroom that was one of the few privileges of rank he was prepared to take advantage of. He'd brought her meals, ensuring the cook made twice as much of his own usual fare and shared it with her so as to prevent anyone attempting to poison her. Rebellious and violent though they were, none of his Marines dared even consider poisoning their commanding officer.

* * *

The deaths… Smoker was angry about the deaths because Dracule Lisska had committed three of them in defence of Tashigi, placing him in the Artificer's debt. Of the other two, one he had committed himself on deck in full view of the rest of the men so as to beat into their heads how serious he was about real Justice. The other had climbed in through the window to his private cabin on the first night and tried to rape his prisoner, who had blasted the moron into fist-sized chunks and _through_ the door leading to his office in her sleep. He'd been woken by the sound of splintering wood and seen the streak of debris, quivering meat, ruptured organs and shattered bone that was oozing blood across his floor, sighed and gone to order the more loudly insubordinate men currently on night watch to clear up the mess. Seeing him scowling at being woken, arms crossed as he loomed over the heap of cooling flesh while behind him his prisoner grumbled and turned over in her sleep had at least prevented any more late-night attempts on Lisska's life.

The artificer dodged most of the more subtle or casual attempts with ridiculous ease, demonstrating a full and precise understanding of haki of all three kinds. A Marine delivering paperwork who 'accidentally' fumbled his pistol and shot at her was dodged without Lisska even looking up from cannibalising a pair of shirts donated by Tashigi to fit the pregnant woman's more ample frame; Smoker had put the man in the brig for the night and lectured him on weapons' safety, a gleam in his eye making quite clear to the trembling idiot that, had the shot connected, the Commodore would have had him on charges for murder and executed him without turning a hair.

A more cunning idiot had a tray of cannonballs fall on her head during her first and only trip on deck; she'd Hardened her entire body even as the skull-sized iron balls fell towards her and calmly continued her conversation with him even as they bounced off her head, shoulders and back. Smoker had demoted _that_ butterfingered Petty Officer back down to recruit and lambasted him furiously then and there: one of the cannonballs would have hit him if Lisska's sudden change in colouring hadn't alerted him that something was amiss. With the threat of being charged with 'assaulting a superior officer' hanging over them, the remaining fools had resorted to something more sneaky for their third and final attempt.

Smoker had been on deck when a commotion in his office had him dashing onto the scene to find Tashigi sprawled unconscious across the floor between Lisska's feet, her glasses crushed on the other side of the room and two headless bodies slowly collapsing backwards in front of reddish pink smears on the walls. He was just in time to see a third Marine take a swing at Lisska with his ensign's katana; his prisoner had ducked and twisted under the blow in a way he wouldn't have believed possible for a pregnant woman then darted upwards and shoved her glowing palm under his chin. Seeing her power work at close range was utterly nauseating: the Marine's head had literally exploded upwards to paint the idiot's brains across the ceiling. The fourth man had then levered himself off the floor and shoved a pistol under Tashigi's chin, not having noticed Smoker's arrival yet. Lisska had simply turned and _looked_ at the man, who had crumpled to the floor frothing at the mouth, the gun falling from nerveless fingers.

"What just happened here?!" Smoker had snarled as his prisoner stepped sideways and knelt next to his ensign.

"Tashigi opened the door, then there four barged past her, knocking away her glasses," Lisska said calmly, gently probing the dark bruise on his ensign's temple. "She tried to draw her sword on them but they knocked her out. I then blew those two's heads off and got her out of the line of fire, but the one you saw grabbed the sword as I was pulling her away. I dodged the first two swings and got Tashigi down onto the floor, then stabbed the last one with a hairpin; I must have missed the pressure point for him to get up again that quickly." His prisoner made a dissatisfied face at such carelessness. "Then the one with the sword had another go at me and I think you saw the rest."

"You used haki on the last one," Smoker noted neutrally. A very rare kind of haki at that.

"He threatened his senior officer, not me personally," Lisska said calmly, the bruise on his ensign's temple fading away beneath her glowing fingertips. "I believe you Marines have rules about that."

Smoker hadn't been able to say anything more to her as Tashigi woke up at that point and apologised profusely for her part in the debacle, but the entire incident had left a sour taste in his mouth even after he had executed the surviving moron the next morning at dawn. He had failed to keep his word: his prisoner had done a better job of protecting herself than he had. She hadn't called him on it, not even when he apologised for failing to keep his promise, instead saying that he could not be held responsible for those who deliberately disobeyed him. He privately disagreed, but hadn't said so: they were _his_ men, so _all_ of their actions were his responsibility.

He didn't think his prisoner cared much for Justice, but she certainly had Honour, which was more than enough for him considering. However he owed her for protecting Tashigi and he hated to owe, especially someone as hard to pin down as Dracule Lisska.

* * *

The first thing Smoker had done on returning to G-5 was escort his prisoner to his private rooms and lock her in with Tashigi; the second thing he'd done was report directly to Headquarters the events that had led to him taking the Shichibukai's daughter into protective custody. The man on the other end had been incredibly helpful and efficient as soon as the Commodore uttered the name 'Dracule', redirecting his call to Vice-Admiral Momonga who listened attentively, did not ask pointless questions and informed him that the World's Strongest Swordsman would be joining him at G-5 the next morning.

Momonga also informed him that the Marine base on Spinoza Island had burned down three days previously with no casualties, though a great many Marines had suffered minor burns and other injuries from falling debris and Commodore Henken was afflicted what looked like torture wounds from something very, very hot that had put out one of his eyes, destroyed his dominant hand and castrated him, among other, lesser things. The perpetrator had apparently introduced himself as 'Spadille', was clearly some kind of fire Logia and had invaded the infirmary and politely inquired after Smoker's prisoner, claiming to be her bodyguard. Smoker confirmed it, was informed that Hawk-Eyes had also confirmed it and was requested to allow the man full access to Dracule Lisska when he inevitably arrived. Momonga also thanked the commodore for the information regarding the nature of the incident on Smokestack Island; apparently four ships and over eight hundred pirates had died there, nothing left of some of them except ashen silhouettes on bleached stone walls. The Vice-Admiral added that the Shichibukai had referred to Spadille as 'barely competent, but dedicated' which, coupled with the information provided, painted a disturbing picture of the unknown man's skills. Competent from a man of Hawk-Eyes calibre, even if barely so, was a considerable endorsement, never mind that the swordsman was a pirate. For Dracule Mihawk to call Spadille 'dedicated'… Smoker suspected 'utterly focussed and completely unstoppable' was a more realistic description. Not having a bounty despite being that strong suggested the man wasn't a pirate, or at least wasn't a pirate yet. The way Lisska had said that her father 'acquired' Spadille suggested there was more to the bodyguard's relationship with the Shichibukai than what was immediately apparent.

In a truly terrible temper after finishing the call Smoker had called all his men into the yard and assigned them extra training and chores, personally overseeing them and making sure nobody dared slack off.

* * *

Several hours later Smoker was catching up with the paperwork in his office when Tashigi's startled shriek from the next room had him barging in to see what the problem was. He found Tashigi clutching her sword and staring in shock as a tall, broad-shouldered man in a top hat swung inside the open window –on the tenth floor!– and dropped to his knees next to where Dracule Lisska was sprawled across the couch.

"Precious!" the man said intensely, wrapping his arms around the pregnant woman and pulling her close. "Thank God, Precious, I was so worried-"

Lisska patted the man who could only be Spadille on the shoulder. "Hey, I'm safe and you got here before my father did. Emergency over."

"Bar the inevitable shouting," Spadille muttered ruefully, letting go of the pregnant woman and turning to face Smoker. To the Commodore's surprise the massively built man knelt and touched his head to the floor. "Commodore Smoker, you have my gratitude for securing the wellbeing of my charge in my absence."

"I was doing my _job_," Smoker said gruffly, not sure how to take this. "No thanks necessary."

The man rose, planted his feet firmly and grinned, fists on his hips. "A competent, honest Marine officer in the New World; who'd have thought it. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Smoker stared, suddenly hit by a thunderbolt of memory. That build, that stance, that grin, that voice… hell, that nose! "What's your name?"

"Spadille."

"No," Smoker's teeth clenched over his cigar, "your _full_ name." He _knew_ he was right!

Spadille paused and then laughed out loud, tipping his hat back to give the White Hunter a good look at his face. "Rahahahaha! Very well, Commodore Smoker: my full name is Edward D. Spadille and it really _is_ a pleasure to meet someone of your calibre."

Edward D. Spadille.

_Edward_ D. Spadille.

Edward _D_. Spadille.

Whitebeard had a child of his own blood and that child was a D; this man was the son of an incredible powerful Yonko and was clearly just starting to grow into his full potential. And he stood firmly under the protection of one of the Shichibukai.

Damnation!

* * *

Smoker deals with his new and still troublesome subordinates defying him, then meets Spadille and spots something upsetting. It really isn't his day.


	113. Contention

**Contention**

As mentioned by Vice-Admiral Momonga, the Shichibukai Dracule Mihawk arrived at G-5 the next morning. Really, really early the next morning: Smoker was roused from the bed he'd commandeered on a lower floor –as Lisska and her bodyguard were occupying his usual quarters– before the dawn shift change by a trembling Warrant Officer who informed him the World's Strongest Swordsman was standing outside the front gate. Smoker had dressed quickly, sent the man back to his post and hurried down to the gate, silently cursing the day that the World Government had decided to offer certain notorious pirates conditional pardons in exchange for their support. Hawk-Eyes was the most longstanding Shichibukai by far, having served the World Government for twenty years without once doing anything the Gorosei had to cover up or overlook. From reading past reports Smoker suspected the World's Strongest Swordsman was more apathetic towards the government than anything else, but at least he did not thrive of chaos and strife like other pirates did: he simply did as he pleased, wandering the Grand Line and sporadically responding to the Gorosei's summons.

As he hurried down the stairs, Smoker realised that Hawk-Eyes' daughter would have been a little over a year old when the World's Strongest Swordsman accepted the position of Shichibukai. Was that why the man had done it? It would certainly explain why a man who clearly cared for nothing except proving his own strength would let himself be tied down in such a way.

Striding out of the front door, the commodore was confronted with the sight of the tall, dark-haired Shichibukai with his massive cross-shaped sword strapped to his back frowning pensively at the trembling Marines on gate duty. As they were part of Smoker's own new division and had likely been aware of the attempts on Lisska, even if they hadn't participated, their fear was all the more justified.

"Hawk-Eyes," Smoker growled, "you're early."

"White Hunter," the Shichibukai said coolly. "I trust my daughter is well?"

"I'll take you to her," the Marine Commodore said briskly, turning around as the World's Greatest Swordsman walked inside the G-5 compound and fell in step behind him. "Her bodyguard showed up yesterday afternoon." Smoker had been hoping for a response of some kind, but Hawk-Eyes simply nodded slightly in acknowledgement of the statement. The silence remained as Smoker led the way up the stairs to his private office and attached suite, where the White Hunter banged on the door to the bedroom until it opened.

"Shh!" Spadille hissed, raising a finger to his lips as he slipped out into the office in nothing but his underwear. "She's still asleep and I do _not_ want her waking up early after the week she's had."

"Spadille," Hawk-Eyes said flatly. "Where were you?"

The son of Whitebeard sighed, a hand sliding through his hair and down his face. "Good morning to you too, boss. We got cornered on Smokestack by four of Kaido's captains wanting to take Lisska for something; don't know what and don't care. I sunk the ships, made her leave the island and then hunted down every last pirate left on land. Took me three days; could have done it in under an hour but Smokestack's densely populated and Precious doesn't like it when I create masses of unnecessary collateral damage; says it's a sign of incompetence."

"It is," the Shichibukai said dryly. "Continue."

"Followed her to Spinoza, where we'd agreed to rendezvous as it's got a Marine base next to the port and pirates weren't likely to try and abduct her from there," Spadille went on, "but she wasn't there when I arrived and asking around I found out the base Commodore cornered her on her second day there and tried to murder her. I needed more info than that so I visited the base, asked a few questions, found out Smoker here had picked her up and that he was attached to G-5, so I borrowed an Eternal Pose and set out again. Arrived here yesterday afternoon and haven't left Precious' side since." He paused. "Hey, remind me to give that Pose back later, will you?"

Smoker grunted, amused despite himself at what the tall youth had left out. "You also burnt the base to the ground," he said gruffly, "and crippled Commodore Henken."

Spadille blinked innocently, a wide smile on his face. "I did? Really? Can you prove it?"

Smoker growled, now irritated: he couldn't prove it. The Spinoza base had caught fire as this infuriating individual walked through it but the man hadn't actually been caught _doing_ anything. As for Henken, the man's mind had been utterly destroyed by his experiences and he wasn't doing more than whimper in terror or scream in agony right now.

"I'll take that as a no," Spadille said cheerfully. "Anything else?"

"Why was my daughter attacked by Marines?" Hawk-Eyes asked, turning to face Smoker with a slight frown on his face, "and why are some of her assailants still walking around?"

Smoker bit down hard on his cigars. "I accept full responsibility for the stupidity of my men;" he said firmly, "as their commanding officer I can't stand by and let you kill them."

"The World Government has always been very zealous in defending the rights and wellbeing of Pose Artificers," Hawk-Eyes continued, gaze becoming darker and more intense. "They are exceedingly valuable and highly necessary to the smooth running of the Marine forces. It would not be the first time an example was made; certainly Commodore Henken will be written off as a liability after his participation in this… incident."

Smoker realised then that Lisska had likely picked the profession she had for the additional protection it offered: despite having to take serious risks with the Grand Line's weather and other unpredictable factors, Pose Artificers were offered almost as much protection by the World Government as the Tenryuubito were. Capable Artificers were rarer than Sea Stone and far, far more valuable.

"You would die for your men?" Hawk-Eyes asked, raising an eyebrow by a mere fraction. "Would they appreciate your sacrifice, I wonder, or would they discard it through their own blindness and self-serving greed?"

Smoker growled, wishing he still had his jitte; he'd had to order a replacement after Boa Hancock had destroyed his first one and it wasn't finished yet. "Whether or not they appreciate it is beside the point," he ground out. "They are under my command, making their actions my responsibility. All of their actions."

Hawk-Eyes sighed, reaching for his sword. "What a waste."

"Tashigi said she owed Precious for saving her life," Spadille said abruptly, drawing both men's attention to him. "She's Smoker's ensign, boss. Kinda wimpy but knows her way around a sword."

Smoker stiffened in abrupt fury. "You can't have Tashigi!"

Hawk-Eyes glanced sideways at him. "With you dead, what will become of her?" the Shichibukai asked cruelly. "Spadille says she lacks the resolve to make her own way in the New World."

Smoker bit down hard on his cigars, hating both men in front of him with a ferocious loathing for making him chose between Tashigi and his new command. It was true that Tashigi was soft, but if he died he trusted Hina to take the Ensign in. But if these two persuaded Tashigi to leave the Marines by playing on her guilt should he die…

"Whazzup?" came a slurred voice from his left. All three men turned to see Lisska leaning against the door frame wearing a baggy nightgown, her loosely braided hair hanging past her knees.

"Precious?" Spadille said cautiously, sliding over to hover next to her. "Are you okay?"

The woman leant into her bodyguard's side, arms wrapping around his waist. "S too _early_ for this, Kajin," she complained with a yawn. "Oh. G'mornin' father, Smoker-san."

"How many murder attempts were there by the Marines, daughter?" Hawk-Eyes asked. Lisska straightened automatically, but didn't let go of Spadille.

"Before Smoker-san took me into custody or after?"

"Both."

"Before… Commodore Henken tried to bash my head in, so that's one," the sleepy Pose Artificer mumbled, counting on her fingers. "Then he sent Marine patrols after me, not sure how many-"

"Five six man patrols," Spadille interrupted.

"…'kay. They all tried to kill me first, so I killed all of them back except the last one, 'cause Smoker-san was watching," Lisska went on. "Killed two of the last one, maimed the other four. So… thirty-one attempts at least. After Smoker took me on board his ship there were… four attempts. One guy tried to shoot me, another dropped cannonballs on me, another tried to knock me overboard and then a gang of them tried to kill Tashigi and make it look like I did it so they could kill me next and claim revenge."

Smoker hadn't known one of his men had tried to knock her overboard. "Five attempts while in my care, Lisska-san," he admitted heavily. "A man broke into your cabin on the first night."

Spadille snickered. "Bet he got the shock of his life," the well-built man muttered with a grin.

Lisska blinked. "Oh. Did I make a mess?"

Smoker snorted at her apologetic curiosity. "Less than when you saved Tashigi." Though cleaning their comrades' brains off his cabin ceiling after that last attempt had done a lot to cool his men's' thirst for senseless violence.

"Yet you are reluctant to see me make an example of such scum, Commodore," Hawk-Eyes noted with a frown.

Lisska snorted. "You're just another pirate to Smoker-san, father," she pointed out: "he's a _proper_ Marine. He wouldn't hand over a rabid dog to you if he could possibly avoid it."

Spadille snickered, the Shichibukai's lips twitched and Smoker abruptly got the impression he was about to get even more deeply into debt with Lisska than before.

"You have a solution, daughter?" Hawk-Eyes asked dryly, folding his arms.

"Demand an inquiry and Headquarters will have everyone actually involved court-martialled and shot," Lisska said bluntly. "Marine justice at its finest. I can point them all out if you like." She paused. "You can always beat Smoker-san into a bloody pulp for failing to protect me from his command afterwards. Or before, even: I doubt anyone from Headquarters would care either way."

Hawk-Eyes was scowling but he did seem to be considering it; Smoker had to admit it was a solution he was more comfortable with. Those who'd disobeyed him would be suitably punished and the remaining men would understand how important justice was to ensure order was maintained.

"Why wouldn't they care, Precious?" Spadille asked quietly, though Smoker heard him just fine and likely so did the Shichibukai.

"Smoker makes a lot of the, ah, less _principled_ officers further up the ranks uncomfortable," Lisska murmured back. "No real enemies, but a lot of people would turn a blind eye if he had a nasty accident."

"Ah." Smoker had suspected something like that, but hearing it spoken out loud made his gut boil. He didn't doubt the information; Pose Artificers interacted directly with Headquarters as part of their contracts so Lisska likely overheard a lot of gossip.

"Satisfactory," Hawk-Eyes said eventually. "However I will not be allowing you to wander freely in your current condition now that you are clearly being targeted. I will find a safe house for you and Spadille and you will stay there."

"Father!" Lisska protested. "What about my checkups!"

The Shichibukai raised an eyebrow. "Your doctor can visit you."

"But islands are boring!" the woman whined childishly, pouting.

"You are not in any condition for further 'excitement'," the Shichibukai said repressively. "Or do I have to place you in your mother's custody?"

Lisska wilted. "I'll be good," she muttered, leaning her head against Spadille's side. "Can I at least stay in the New World?"

Hawk-Eyes glanced at Smoker. "I don't see why not, so long as you stay well away from Marines."

"Promise," Lisska said instantly. "Can I go back to sleep now? Moth woke me up but I'm still tired."

Hawk-Eyes nodded and the woman dragged her bodyguard back into the bedroom and firmly shut the door. The Shichibukai then turned to face Smoker again:

"We will leave as soon as my daughter is ready; be sure your men understand that you and she are all that keep me from taking all their lives for their complicity." He strode out of the office.

Smoker clenched his fists and breathed deeply, trying to keep his temper in check. He had been right: he now owed Lisska his own life as well as Tashigi's, not to mention those of his men. Owing her was however less irritating than owing someone like Straw-Hat would be; at least she wasn't a pirate or an idiot.

* * *

Smoker meets another Shichibukai, but at least this meeting went better than the previous ones did: Crocodile and Boa Hancock both tried to kill him. That's the only high point though.


	114. Amusement

**Amusement **

Shanks had not been expecting to be tracked down by Hawk-Eyes while hanging out on Yukiryu Island; he hadn't seen the swordsman since he brought Luffy's bounty to Shanks' attention, though he knew the Shichibukai had to have been at Marineford. That Mihawk was coming to him with a request was also completely out of character: Generally it was Shanks who asked repeatedly and Hawk-Eyes who eventually grudgingly conceded.

"So what is it?" the Yonko asked, setting his sake aside.

The World's Strongest Swordsman shifted. "It concerns my daughter," he admitted.

"Eyas? Is she alright?" Shanks had been privately concerned for her since learning more about her past and her vanishing from the Red Force with Ace after the funeral hadn't done anything to allay that worry. Never mind that she would be more than half-way through her pregnancy right now.

"Currently yes," Mihawk said shortly, "however Kaido has stepped up his attempts against her and certain Marines have tried to make her lose the child."

"What." He wasn't the only person looking ready to kill; all of his officers seemed ready to set out right now and rain death and destruction on those responsible.

"Lisska assures me there was no serious harm done and those responsible are being court-martialled as per her request, as is her due as a Pose Artificer with a Government contract," Hawk-Eyes went on sourly, "and Spinoza Island is now lacking both a Marine Base and a Commodore due to Spadille taking vengeance on her behalf. Kaido is also down over eight hundred men."

"Spadille?" Shanks asked, puzzled.

Mihawk raised an eyebrow. "Fire-Fist's new identity. Lisska persuaded me to take him under my wing until he is capable enough to manage on his own."

"You have minions now?" Hawk-Eyes didn't really have a ship, so he couldn't have crew. "I knew you'd lighten up eventually, you old recluse!"

"He is technically my daughter's bodyguard."

"And probably her lover," Shanks pointed out with no small amount of glee; he'd noticed how the resurrected pirate watched Eyas when he didn't realise other people were looking and knew her well enough to bet she would notice soon and take action, never mind that she already had one lover.

Mihawk's eyebrow twitched. Ooh, definitely Eyas' lover then. "So Kaido went after her again?" Shanks asked, drawing the conversation back to the original subject.

"Lisska is less able to conceal and defend herself while pregnant and the incident with the Marines means I no longer feel she can travel safely," Mihawk said tightly, "however I cannot take her back to Kuraigana. Is there an Island within your territory she can be safely hidden on?"

Shanks frowned, thinking seriously on the matter. Eyas couldn't stay on an uninhabited island in her current condition and he didn't want to risk her on one of the peripheral ones where Big Mom, Kaido or even Blackbeard might make a play for her. Considering the Supernovas –who were making a name for themselves as the 'Worst Generation'– were trying to hack their way into prominence it was safer to keep her well off the beaten track altogether. Which left…

"Redrock Reef," he said aloud. Beckman nodded appreciatively.

"Which is?" Hawk-Eyes inquired.

"It's way, way off the main routes right in the middle of my territory; I didn't even know it was there until Eyas found it," Shanks admitted sheepishly. "The Log Pose doesn't so much as twitch near it despite the impressive iron deposits. It's an autumn island surrounded by six miles of reef on all sides: to actually reach land you have to either take a longboat or swim and the currents over the reefs are pretty nasty. I've got a detailed map of it somewhere –Eyas made it for me– and it's inhabited now, but you can't even find it unless you know where it is and then you can't land without knowing exactly where all the reefs are and even that's a challenge. Eyas gave us a lift in Swift Hunter when we made landfall the first time after we sank three boats trying to get close." Redrock Reef was without a doubt the most challenging island to actually _land_ on he'd ever come across on the Grand Line. Ironically, other than the proliferation of incredibly poisonous frogs and butterflies, the actual island was perfectly suited to human habitation.

"Who lives there?"

Shanks grinned. "Spitfire asked me nicely so I let her settle some of the human sea-kin there: the ones who just want a quiet life. There're probably mermaids living in the reefs now considering what happened at Marineford, but on my last visit there were three villages on the island and a steady trade through the Sea Network. So it's isolated, inhabited, secret and not at all primitive. Perfect for squirreling you trouble-prone and pregnant daughter on." The pirate paused. "How're adapting to impending grandparenthood, incidentally? Any grey hairs yet?"

A vein throbbed in Hawk-Eyes' temple; he'd hit a nerve. Mihawk was fun to tease even if you needed to be really on the ball to spot the signs. "She is far less trouble than you are despite her pregnancy," the swordsman said dryly, "going by Benn Beckmann's appearance." Beckman had gone completely grey during the past five years.

Shanks pouted. "That's an unfair comparison."

"Benn is only a few years older than I am," Mihawk countered blandly. Shanks paused; was Hawk-Eyes _teasing_ him?

"Hey, it _has_ affected you! You've mellowed!" the Yonko said gleefully. "If I'd known grandkids were what it took I'd have done something about it earlier!"

Hawk-Eyes scowled thunderously. "At least I know about and actually take care of my offspring," he said sharply, "which is more than you can say."

Shanks stiffened. "I don't have any kids, you know that."

Mihawk raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Are you sure?"

Shanks was about to retort when he realised that no, he wasn't sure. He'd never exactly gone back and checked every last village he'd ever partied in. He suddenly felt panic creeping up on him as he remembered that mermaids weren't all that forthcoming to the fathers of their children and there had been several pretty mermaids among his conquests.

"Do you know something I don't?" the Yonko asked cautiously. Mihawk simply folded his arms and gave the redhead a look. "C'mon Hawk-Eyes! This isn't funny!"

"I do not _know_ anything about any potential offspring of yours," the swordsman conceded, "but I have eyes and certain suspicions."

Shanks let his head drop into his hands and groaned. That was almost evidence in and of itself. "Oh God help me."

"If you are actually interested in facts and details I suggest you contact the women in question," Mihawk went on blandly, "as should your crew. I doubt you are the only one to have celebrated your successes with female company over the years."

The sudden chorus of chokes and splutters that erupted around him let the Yonko know that at least his men were sharing in his misery.

"I didn't think I was the only one," Beckman said calmly. Shanks' head shot up.

"What! You knew?!"

The grey-haired first mate smiled. "I actually paid attention to what Pearl was talking about when she first came on board, captain," he said pleasantly. "Who did you think I've been corresponding with for all these years?"

Shanks gaped like a landed fish. "You-you-you!"

Beckman chuckled. "I may not have been able to raise my kids but I do know who they are and they know I care even if I can't be there. One of them is twenty and a dancer at the Mermaid Café."

Shanks choked on air, then took a large swig of sake to steady his nerves. "Have we seen her there?"

The sly smirk on his first mate's face was _not _reassuring. "Her name is Seira."

Shanks desperately tried to remember his last trip to Fishman. He'd drunk a lot, of course, and they'd been to the Mermaid Café. He just about remembered flirting with all of the dancers and waitresses, most of whom had flirted back. Names, names…

"Long brown hair, Striped Blue Angelfish tail?" Beckman prompted with a gleam in his eye.

Urk. Shanks remembered now. At least he hadn't managed to persuade her to leave with him.

"You do remember then," his first mate said. "I felt since Hawk-Eyes hasn't killed you yet for flirting with his daughter I couldn't really make a fuss. Besides, she didn't mind." He smirked again. "Says you're too old for her though."

Shanks groaned.

"Considering how frequently the Whitebeard Pirates visited Fishman, you should be more concerned about the parentage of the ladies who _were_ amenable to your attentions," Hawk-Eyes added dryly, humour glinting in his eyes.

"This is payback, isn't it?" Shanks said glumly, staring into his now-empty mug and feeling altogether far too sober.

"I am merely pointing out that I may not be the only person with a grandchild," the swordsman said dryly. "You have sailing the Grand Line longer than I, after all."

Oh. Oh. _Oh_.

Shanks did the only thing he could in the face of such a terrifying and disturbing idea: he blacked out.

* * *

Mihawk gets his own back.


	115. Adoration

**Adoration**

"So, why are we here again?" Ace asked, helping Fox into a modified version of her 'goddess' outfit that was suitably accommodating of her pregnant figure.

Fox sighed. "Mystoria is somewhere I don't mind Law knowing I spend time, the Marines will all think my father has taken me deeper into the New World so they won't look for me and I promised Asura I'd stop by here before Moth was born so he could see who I intend to leave our child with when we eventually rejoin Luffy. Besides, I do need to tell them I'm pregnant, considering they consider me their goddess and I am officially their patron."

"What?" Ace hadn't known that.

"You didn't know?"

"I thought Mystoria fell under Shanks' protection."

Fox winced. "It does. But after they deified me and he found out he decided it would be funny to hand them over to me to 'manage' for him. I've slaughtered more than a few pirates who tried to loot and pillage here and the Temple Guard are sufficiently well-trained to send anyone short of a Yonko's ship packing. Spitfire has a breeding ground near here too, so pirates who get ideas often find themselves looking a Sea King in the face. Besides," she grinned, "after I got the hand of the shapeshifting thing I 'blessed' a few more of the locals. They may not be capable of an intermediate form like Zoans, but the ability to swim more than makes up for it." She shrugged. "Besides, this close to the Red Line most pirates are more interested in restocking than making trouble; we're way to close to G-5 and the new Headquarters for a successful pirate stronghold."

"Do the Marines know you're the local deity?"

Fox snorted. "Of course not. They don't exactly care what cult the locals subscribe to so long as they don't make trouble. They don't know about the shapeshifting either, or we'd have mad scientists breathing down our necks."

"Okay, I understand why you insisted on your doctor's appointment being here," Ace conceded, "and why you're dressing up. But why do I have to dress up?"

Fox gave him a look. "I'm going to introduce you and Asura as my lovers, Kajin. To these people, that makes you my consorts and means I consider you my equals. Ergo, you will also be deified in short order. That means dressing the part. You can either wear what I picked out or go in your normal clothes and have them stolen and replaced."

"What!" Ace wasn't about to let _anyone_ steal his precious hat!

"That's what happened to me," his lover informed him with an amused smile.

"Fine, fine," the flame Logia grumbled. "Wait, deified?"

"You're my lover, Kajin. You will be welcomed, given a fancy title, new clothes and expected to show off to demonstrate to all my devoted warriors that you are worthy of my attentions," Fox said dryly. "Then I'll have to introduce Asura –which will be challenging– and then put up with whatever they decide to do in celebration of my gravid state. _Then_ I will be expected to tell stories, listen to petitions, offer healing and assistance and generally behave in a suitable manner. You will probably get roped into hunting, any and all fire-related activities and sparring. Then you will have to be appreciative of the statue they make of you, the theology they create regarding our relationship and the general awe. You will also be pestered for stories on how we met, which will be twisted, distorted and added to the aforementioned theology."

"That sound completely appalling," Ace said flatly, absently petting Calla, the giant baby snake who was convinced his lover was her mother. Yes, he had liked being infamous but there was a limit!

"I did mention I didn't like being considered a goddess, didn't I?" Fox drawled. "This is why. I do love the locals though, so I put up with it for them and repeatedly mention that I don't consider myself all that divine in the grand scale of things. Powerful yes; all-powerful not a chance." She shook her head. "They'll probably invent some claptrap about you and Asura being gods of destruction and death to balance me out as a goddess of life or some such."

That did sound really likely to the Logia considering his Devil Fruit Ability and Asura's own Spirit Projection.

* * *

Trafalgar Law had been amused to receive a letter from his only long-term patient informing him that her father had grounded her after a run-in with some Marines who objected to her taste in men, and did not mind that it meant the inconvenience of travelling to the New World island of Mystoria to perform her next monthly check-up. This would, in fact, be her last monthly check-up: for the next two months he'd be seeing her every two weeks, then every week for the last month. Fox had informed him well over a week in advance and provided a very good chart of the area of the Grand Line on either side of the Red Line, centred around Marineford. He already had a New World Log Pose, so that wasn't a problem either. His plan to facilitate his rise to the top of the heap was progressing well enough that a short break wouldn't do any harm and a rest on a friendly island to restock and plan his next few moves in greater detail could only be beneficial. His crew would also enjoy some time on dry land after the past months filled with little other than battle, repairs, restocking and sailing hither and thither after various other pirates.

Entering in an alliance with the Sea Network had proved its worth many times over already: he was provided with information on whatever he cared to ask for –so long as he paid for it– and it was always extremely accurate, which made hunting down the pirates he was looking for relatively easy and ensured he never entered a battle blind to his enemies' abilities and mindset. Law had always firmly believed that knowledge was power and his alliance with Silvers Pearl only drove the point home further. However he had also been surprised by the shrewd mermaid –not least that she'd dug up the details of his past with Donflamingo– who paid him a personal visit one dark night to inform him that if he did _that_ to _her_ his crew would never find his corpse. She'd been so chillingly affable as she held his head just above the surface of the sea, his body paralysed, unresponsive and totally at her mercy, that Law had known true terror for the first time in years and placed her right at the top of his list of people not to cross, _ever_. Unlike his former captain, Pearl truly did not care about image, prestige or money: all she cared about were her people and if Law ever betrayed her she would see to it he never got the chance to use what he had learnt against those in her care.

Wondering to himself why Fox had picked that specific island to lie low on, the Surgeon of Death walked out of his operating theatre to make sure his navigator was sailing directly for Fishman Island. They wouldn't be stopping there, but it was close enough to the deep channel carved under the Red Line to make a good landmark.

* * *

Shortly after actually arriving on Mystoria Law knew exactly why Fox was here and was having a hard time concealing his amusement.

"So, a goddess? How's that working out for you?" he asked, grinning rather more widely than usual as he escorted her on board his submarine.

"Drop it," his patient growled, managing her layered garment and heavy jewellery with the ease of long practice. "I didn't do it on purpose."

"You achieved apotheosis by accident?" Law found that even funnier. "What did you do?"

"Ended a famine, healed some people," Fox grumbled, lifting her skirts so she could step over the rail onto the submarine's deck. "They all know what Devil Fruit is but for some reason I'm a goddess rather than just a Fruit User with a nifty trick."

Law chuckled. "Will your future visits be here?"

Fox frowned. "I'm not sure. I'd rather persuade my father that it is safer for me to visit you than for you to visit wherever he ends up hiding me, but he may insist on my travelling to a specific location and meeting you there. He's become rather paranoid about my safety of late." She sighed. "It's not like I didn't kill most of the people who came after me, either!"

"How?" Law asked, opening the door to the theatre.

Fox grinned. "I made their heads explode."

Ah. So the threat to paint the walls with the brains of his crew should they crowd her had been a very literal one. "Most, not all?"

She glanced at him sideways. "I wished to preserve my cover, Doctor Law; I'm sure you understand."

Law smirked. Fox was a powerful, underhanded killer with a ruthless streak a mile wide and a truly peculiar sense of honour. It was what part of what made her so interesting. She was also brilliant, inventive, generally truthful if rarely genuinely honest, entertaining and completely uninterested in power. He fully intended to enter an alliance with her later, possibly through her captain, so as to have her unique skills on his side when certain of his plans reached fruition.

* * *

Ace finds out that being boyfriend to a 'goddess' comes with strings attached. Also more of Law, who finds out about Fox' apparent divinity and thinks it's a hoot.


	116. Standpoint

**Standpoint**

From the way Fox had described things, Ace had braced himself for the worst. However he soon realised his lover had exaggerated how bad things were; or perhaps she really had a very serious problem with accepting genuine praise and gratitude. When Swift Hunter had docked at the small jetty next to the fishing boats and other small craft half the locals hanging around had dashed off and the other half had run forward to greet her, bowing and smiling and all utterly delighted. She'd been congratulated on her pregnancy over a dozen times in the first minute, children had wiggled between the adults to show off trinkets or babble about what they'd been up to since her last visit and several women had started reciting a litany of births, achievements, weddings, accidents and deaths as the party moved slowly away from the shore and up the hill towards the village. Fox did not give the faintest indication that she wasn't enjoying the press of bodies and childish hands pulling on her skirts, smiling, listening, commiserating and comforting in turn as she listened to the chatter. Ace had fallen in step behind her, interested in how nobody had so much as commented on his presence. The men were keeping a wary eye on him, but had not even asked him to identify himself.

The flame Logia's first interaction with the locals was with a small girl who had shown off her starfish hair ornaments, who spent about half a minute glancing at him over her shoulder before tugging on Fox' skirt to gain his lover's attention.

"What is it, Nidora-chan?" Fox asked, pausing and turning to look the little girl right in the eye.

"Rokuseizon-sama! Who is he?" the girl asked, pointing at Ace.

Fox smiled. "He's one of my consorts, Nidora-chan. He has a normal name but I call him Kajin."

"Why?" this question came from a boy with albatross feathers in his hair. Ace took this as his cue, grinned and let a fireball coalesce and made it bounce up and down in his palm.

"I'm fire," he said simply. The boy's eyes widened.

"You can show off later, Kajin," Fox said lightly, her smile showing amusement though Ace could feel tension as well through their bond.

"Sure thing Precious," he said casually, letting the fireball wink out of existence and hooking his thumbs back over his belt. It felt odd to be wearing shorts again and sandals rather than boots, but he didn't want any of his new clothes to be stolen by overzealous locals. His shoulder-length indigo hair fell around his face in waves, slightly more orderly than before but no less thick; if he'd been blond he'd have looked like a miniature version of his Pops without the chin.

Fox smiled and the procession continued, though some of the smaller children looked like they wanted to come closer and get him to do more tricks for them. Ace snuck a theatrical glance at the back of his lover's head, then conjured up a dozen Hotarubi to dance between his hands. His diminutive watchers were entranced, peeking out at him from behind older teens and adults who seemed just as impressed as the little ones. Ace continued playing with the animated sparks until they reached the large temple complex he remembered from his last visit and he had to extinguish the Hotarubi before Fox 'noticed'. He hid his hands behind his back and put on his most innocent expression as his lover turned to look at him, which made all the kids watching him giggle and a lot of the adults smile knowingly.

"Rokuseizon-sama!" came a familiar male voice from across the square. Ace turned to see Sako hurrying towards them, both his wives in his wake with three children under the age of five between them.

"Sako," Fox said warmly, holding out her arms towards the massively built warrior; it was a bit odd for Ace to be a good six inches taller than the man who'd loomed over him not even a year ago. Sako walked right up to his 'goddess' and hugged her, mindful of her protruding belly.

"It is an honour to have you here, lady goddess," the warrior rumbled warmly, "and a joy to see you have chosen to bear a child at long last. Is your companion the father?" he looked up at Ace, then frowned thoughtfully as though trying to place him.

"That's quite a long story you're asking for, Sako," Fox said laughingly, patting his arm. "How about I explain why I'm here in private and let everybody else prepare a banquet for this evening and we can tell the tales of my adventures to everyone then."

There was a cheer all around and their audience quickly began to chatter amongst themselves, some running off into the forest and others dashing back down the paved road they'd just ascended. Fox caught Ace' hand and led him into the main temple, Sako and his older wife following them as the younger wife herded the children away towards a grass-roofed shelter with the promise of a story and treats from the cooking she intended to start.

* * *

Ace had visited the temple before: it was a simple large stone room with corridors leading out to smaller shrines on three sides. Fox however did not go down any of these corridors but turned into an alcove right to the left of the entrance and led the way up a hidden staircase to the second floor, which consisted of a smaller room with a high ceiling and a colonnaded balcony all the way around it.

"You live up here?" he asked, taking in the bright wall hangings, thick mats and elegant furniture carved in the simple local style.

"It is _my_ temple, Kajin," Fox pointed out dryly, making herself comfortable on a stool. Ace simply dropped onto the mat in front of her, crossed his legs and leant back so his shoulders rested against her knees. Sako and his wife –wasn't her name Truei?– sat on sturdy square cushions facing Fox, making Ace feel like he was in one of those little village schools he'd seen from time to time on small islands.

"So," Fox started quietly. "As you have noticed, I am expecting my first child. However there are those who object to the man who is the father of my daughter-to-be and have tried to harm me. My fathers' enemies have also renewed their efforts, seeing my condition as a sign of increased vulnerability. My father has therefore decreed that I will be spending the rest of my pregnancy in hiding. He is currently in search of an appropriate location, but as soon as he finds one I will be sent there and likely not return until after my daughter is weaned."

"I take it this man is not your child's father then?" Truei asked.

Fox smiled. "I have taken two consorts; my child belongs to the one who is not here. He is training with my father and intends to surpass him."

"Your lover means to defeat your father?" Sako said wonderingly. "He must be a powerful warrior then."

"Currently more young, stubborn and ambitious than powerful," Fox admitted, "but my father believes he has the potential to do so."

Sako chuckled. "Ah, I know the type."

"So," Truei said, "considering that all these changes have come in the past year since you last visited, Rokuseizon-sama, would you share the full tale now? I know you would prefer certain details not to become public. Besides, I feel my husband has recognised your beloved from somewhere, which must be a tale in itself."

Ace tensed slightly but Fox let her hand tangle in his hair to massage his scalp reassuringly. "It is a long tale," she admitted, "with much pain, triumph, horror, adventure and passion to carry it along. It will take a long time to tell, but I dare say the banquet will not be ready for many hours yet so I have time."

"If you would, Rokuseizon-sama," Sako asked with a warm smile. "I for one would like to hear of those who have brought such peace and direction to your heart."

"Always so observant, Sako," Fox sighed, a smile teasing the corners of her mouth. "Very well: attend then to the tale of how I met a young man with the Will to become the ruler of the seas who claimed me for his court and gave me purpose, and through whom I met a young asura who caught my eye and later stole my heart." She smiled mischievously. "The full tale of how I met Kajin here is a story for another time, though it intersects with this one."

"This story begins as I was sailing near Reverse Mountain, at the very gates of Paradise, nearly a year ago and stopped at an island to offer healing…"

* * *

So question: Do you want to hear the story as told to Sako and Truei? Or should I just move on to their reactions and the subsequent banquet?


	117. Legend

becket, Deer-Shifter, Molly Grace 16 and Hell Changer all voted for the story, so here it is. Don't worry, I'm still going to write the reactions regardless...

* * *

**Legend **

While I was healing on the island pirates came and attacked me, threatening my patients. I did not wish to make a scene and so simply seized my belongings and fled, but the pirates were many and their captain blinded me and bound me in Sea Stone, sealing my Abilitiy away. I could still have escaped, but the pirate captain was a cruel and vindictive man and I knew that losing to me would humiliate him and he would take out his anger on the islanders. So I pretended greater weakness, waited and bided my time: the pirate was new to the Grand Line and knew nothing of its wonders and horrors. He thought himself strong with his armour and many followers, but I did not need my eyes to tell me he was too weak to last for long. Indeed, it so happened my father was in the area and the pirate happened across him while he was napping. In his irritation at being disturbed my father destroyed the entire fleet and would have sunk the flagship too, but a storm blew up and interrupted the fight.

"_Did your father know you were on board?"_

"_I honestly have no idea, Kajin."_

Once the flagship with me on it had escaped the storm the pirate captain's battle commander told me of their plight and asked me for assistance, as their Log Pose had broken and they were adrift. I offered to direct the ship back to East Blue, where they had come from, in exchange for greater freedoms on board. He agreed, so I used Swift Hunter –who had followed me– to carry the larger vessel across the Calm Belt and back into East Blue, which some call the weakest sea. I agree that most of the pirates and other criminals there do not amount to much, but I feel that is to balance out the rare and incredibly strong individuals that surface there from time to time. The Pirate King was from East Blue after all, as is the Revolutionary Dragon.

Once returned to a more predictable sea I was placed back in chains. The captain's battle commander however felt he owed me a debt, so when we reached the ship belonging to Red-Leg, a retired pirate, he hid me on board. The captain who had been defeated by the Grand Line tried to steal Red-Leg's ship, but was repelled by the owner, his crew and the crew belonging to a young pirate new to the seas who had the Will to rule the waves and was determined to make that will reality. That young pirate wore a straw hat given to him by a Red-haired pirate captain and had a body made of rubber as a result of eating Devil Fruit. The young pirate had a crew of three: a green-haired asura who fought with three blades and was determined to become the greatest swordsman in the world, an orange-haired woman with weighty secrets and a natural talent for navigation beyond anything I have ever seen and a long-nosed sniper with a faint heart and a liar's tongue but a strong determination to better himself.

During the battle my father arrived and sunk the ship belonging to the pirate captain who had abducted me. The green-haired swordsman then challenged my father to a duel and lost, but in losing somehow impressed my father into sparing him, though he wounded him terribly. My father than encouraged the asura to surpass him, which the asura swore to do and promised his own captain he would never lose another fight.

At the same time my father arrived the straw-hat captain's ship was stolen by his orange-haired navigator, whose previous obligations and heavy secrets tied her to her past. The young pirate however wanted the woman to be his navigator, so he sent the wounded asura and the long-nosed sniper after her and promised to follow once he'd got what he'd come for. You see, the pirate with the Will to rule wanted a cook for his ship and Red-Leg was famous for having many experienced chefs working for him. In particular the young captain's eye had been caught by Red-Leg's apprentice, who had a kind heart, a foul mouth and worshipped pretty women. However the apprentice felt too heavily indebted to his master to leave.

When the battle was over and the pirate captain who had captured me was repelled, Red-Leg's apprentice found me, tended to my wounds and fed me. He then allowed himself to be persuaded to leave with the young captain with the straw hat so that he might achieve his own dream, which was to find the place where all the seas met. I asked the young captain if I might accompany him, as his Will intrigued me and I wanted to see how events would unfold around him. I did not tell him this though, merely asking for passage to the Grand Line which he agreed to grant me.

After leaving we followed the two who had gone ahead to the island where the navigator was born and met there with the injured asura, who had just heard that said navigator had murdered the sniper in front of the pirate captain she served. For it so happened that the navigator's home island had been subjugated by a fishman called 'the Saw' and she had pledged herself to him in the hopes of protecting her village. However the navigator had not killed the sniper, simply pretended to, then hidden him with her sister. However when she met the straw-hat captain, the chef and the asura who had followed her she did not tell them this and simply ordered them to leave. The captain did not, of course: he had the Will to become ruler of the seas and wanted the best navigator in the world to sail his ship for him. So they stayed, reunited with the sniper and, when the Saw betrayed the navigator's trust, the young captain defeated him.

After the battle the asura's wounds were greatly exacerbated, so I took him aside and healed him. While I was doing so he told me of his battle with my father and my father's words to him, though he did not then know we were related. I was immediately intrigued, as I had never heard of my father taking particular notice of anyone before. So I healed him a little differently to how I had originally intended, creating a low-level bond, and introduced myself properly. My eyes had healed by this point, so he realised at once that I was telling the truth with regards to my identity. He did not, however, tell anyone else my real name.

* * *

As his goddess took a sip of juice from the pitcher his wife's apprentice had brought up, Sako mused on how warmly animated the lady he served had become while telling the story of her recent adventures. He was not ignorant of the goings-on in the world beyond his home island –news coos delivered everywhere– and he had a good idea of the true identities of the various people she had mentioned thus far, but Rokuseizon's manner of storytelling cast a hazy veil over the world, blurring details and brightening hearts so that the events narrated become more than a mere chronicle, acquiring a timeless quality. This story would be a tale of hope, triumph and hard-won victory, he could tell. The oddly familiar stranger she called 'Kajin' sat at his lady's feet with her hand in his hair was also enjoying the tale, though the warrior could tell he already knew what had so far been recounted.

"So that was how you met the man who is now the father of your child?" Truei asked.

"Yes. Back then however he was simply someone who made me feel safe with whom I decided to initiate a connection with," his goddess replied. "The nature of my powers require me to either be completely solitary or attach myself to a person who calms my protective instincts so that I do not lash out at my comrades by accident. My green-haired asura has excellent instincts and a very steady personality, so he was perfect. That my father had pronounced him interesting merely added spice."

"Not love at first sight then, Kitsune?" Kajin asked her teasingly.

"No more than you were," she teased back, fingers digging into his scalp. "Now, where was I?"

"You had just healed your demon swordsman," Truei said.

"Ah, yes."

Sako resettled himself on his cushion, looking forward to the continuation of the tale.

* * *

After leaving the navigator's home island we travelled to the town where the late Pirate King was executed. While we were there my asura was gifted by fate with two new swords to replace the ones he had broken while fighting my father. We also encountered a Marine captain who recognised the straw-hat pirate's Will for what it was and attempted to capture him, only to be thwarted by the father of the young captain, a father he did not see or even know of at the time: the Revolutionary Dragon. So we escaped unscathed and made our way to reverse mountain, entering Paradise as many before have done and others have done since. In our descent the ship we travelled on, a young caravel called Merry, found the way barred by a young Island Whale. The ship was swallowed whole, but I was knocked overboard and forced to wear my other skin in order to reach the cape to one side of the entrance.

"_Other skin?"_

"_That's a story for another day, Kajin."_

While I was waiting for them the captain and his crew met a doctor and two strangers within the whale's stomach. After defeating the strangers the doctor let them out of the whale through a door in its side and I was reunited with them.

The straw-hat pirate later allowed the two strangers he'd met within the whale's stomach to determine the route he'd take within Paradise, as they wished to be returned to a particular island and he agreed to escort them there. I however did not trust them for their hearts were tangled with deceit and violence, so I ensured my features were hidden. It proved a wise move, as the island they led us to was a stronghold of bounty hunters who sought to trap the ship's young captain for the bounty his actions in East Blue had earned. My asura however had taken notice of my caution and been wary of those around him, so he took action in defence of his captain. I also did battle, wanting to protect those who I was starting to feel connected to, but I did so from hiding and slipped from one victory to the next in silence and secret. Only my asura saw me, and he did not speak of my actions at all.

While on that island we discovered that the woman who we had met at the gates of Paradise was in fact a princess of a desert kingdom torn apart by lies and strife sown by the hands of a master: a treacherous member of the Seven Warlords who thirsted for greater power and prestige. The captain with the Will to rule that decided he would return the princess to her homeland and defeat the warlord for her. So we set sail again, now with a princess among our crew. Her home island was however a considerable distance away, so we did not reach it until later in our adventures.

The next island we stopped at was covered in jungle and the home of many ancient and dangerous beasts, as well as two giants who had been duelling for a hundred years without a clear victor being decided. While we were there hitmen in the service of the warlord who the princess opposed attempted to kill her and the crew, but were defeated. It was also at this time that I was first invited to join the crew, though I deflected the request. Unfortunately however the ship's navigator was also infected by an illness. We did not discover the illness until a day later, and though I did my best to counter the symptoms I could not cure her for the illness was as alive as she was and it hid within her cunningly. So I warned the captain –who by then I was starting to think of as my captain– that we needed to turn aside and search for a doctor to tend to her or else she would die. The captain agreed, so a new course was set towards an island of high mountains, cold and snow.

When we sighted the island I offered to travel on ahead to the princess' home island with letters and to scout out the lay of the land. Both the princess and the captain agreed at once, the captain proclaiming me a part of his crew as he did so. I did not object: his Will was such that it would have been a futile waste of my time. Instead I accepted the letters the princess had given me, promised to meet up with them at the main port of the island and set out in Swift Hunter. I had faith that my captain's Will would ensure the survival of the ill navigator and knew my asura would do his best to prevent the rest of the crew from coming to harm, no matter how badly he argued with the cook.

When I reached the island of the desert kingdom however I realised someone I knew was there as well, someone dear to my heart I had not seen in a while. So as soon as I had delivered the letters I had been given I sought out the friend I could sense and found him sitting in a bar. It was Fire-Fist, who I first met shortly after he arrived on the Grand Line and who I became close to after he joined the Whitebeard Pirates.

"_I knew I'd seen you before! You're Fire-Fist!"_

* * *

Fox starts her telling of her recent adventures and Sako demonstrates his observation skills.


	118. Continuation

**Continuation **

When Sako said those words Ace felt as though he had been turned to stone; part of him wanted to say yes, but the rest of him wanted to deny it and a little bit of him felt that it wasn't even true anymore. He didn't know what to say, but as he struggled for an answer –any answer– Zoro emerged from the back of his mind and swept forwards. Ace let his partner –for that was the easiest way to define his bond with the other man– take over, sliding backwards to watch events unfold from behind his own eyes.

* * *

"Fire-Fist is dead."

Sako stiffened, as though the words came from the mouth of the man his goddess called Kajin whose soul he recognised from when the Whitebeard Pirates had visited his village, it was not that man who had spoken. This was a darker presence, savage, cruel and altogether lacking the teasing playfulness that had characterised his goddess' beloved thus far.

"Asura is correct," his goddess said quietly as she continued petting the hair of the man seated before her as though nothing had changed. "Fire-Fist is dead; he died in the arms of the Phantom Fox at Marineford. However we have not yet reached that point in the story, so perhaps you could wait until I have finished before asking questions, Sako?"

Sako bowed his head almost to the ground; this was his goddess speaking what-would-be rather than truly offering him a choice. "My apologies for the interruption, Rokuseizon-sama," he murmured. The man in her lap was scowling and the shadows around him had coalesced into another four arms branching from his shoulders and he had two more faces, one on either side of his head.

"Is this the father of your child then, Rokuseizon-sama?" Truei asked quietly.

"This is indeed my Asura, though he currently wears my Kajin's flesh," the goddess agreed calmly, her fingers still running through indigo locks. "Is everything alright?" That last question was directed to the man seated at her feet.

"Everything's fine where I am," the man she called Asura conceded with a black scowl at Sako. "Kajin was having trouble thinking is all."

"Good. I don't think there will be any more interruptions, so let Kajin come back and I'll continue the story."

Two of the shadow-formed arms reached up to pull her head down even as the demon in another man's skin rose to kneel so he could kiss the goddess with hungry possessiveness. "Mine," he growled before letting go and fading away again.

"Kajin?" the goddess asked solicitously. The large man kissed her himself in a more leisurely fashion, then returned to his seat at her feet.

"I'm fine Kitsune. Just a bit torn."

"Very well. Shall I continue?"

"If you would, Rokuseizon-sama," Sako said humbly, deeply sorry for the upset his careless haste had caused.

"So, I had found my dear friend Fire-Fist in a bar in the desert kingdom of the princess who my captain had decided to help…"

* * *

After we had eaten together Fire-Fist explained to me that he was hunting down a man who had slain one of his brothers; all those who form Whitebeard's crew consider themselves a family as Whitebeard invites them all to become his sons and daughters when they join his crew. One such however had long nursed treachery in his heart, having joined only to further his own goals, and when those goals were achieved he had slain one of his brothers and fled. Unable to let such a crime against his family stand, Fire-Fist had chased after him, intending to kill him that his murdered brother might rest in peace. So it was for that reason that I met my friend in a coastal port far from the rest of his family. I listened to his tale and my heart wept, for I had felt the death and had known the man well. I offered my assistance should my friend find himself in need and learnt that his other purpose in being here was to meet with his younger brother. I soon learnt that this brother was in fact my own new captain with the Will to rule, so Fire-Fist and I spent the rest of the week catching up and having fun, in between my dealing with the responsibilities by captain had given me before my departure.

When my captain arrived with the rest of the crew including the doctor he had persuaded to join him on the island of mountains and snow –a reindeer who could take on human form with the desire to be able to cure every illness– Fire-Fist and I parted ways. He continued his journey in pursuit of his former brother-in-arms while I reunited with my captain to continue in the mission he had chosen, which led us into the desert.

Deserts are very dry and very hot, which is uncomfortable for a child of the sea such as I am. I could have used my powers to defend myself from the heat but I chose not to, as during my stay in the port I had received replies to the letters I had sent and one of those replies required me to commit the services of my phantom servant to protect the princess travelling with us. I had told my asura of the identity of my silent killer, but he had not breathed a word to anyone and I had yet to speak of it to my captain. Understand that my captain was a very open and honest person and I was still uncertain of how he would react to the news. I was also unsure he would manage to keep it secret considering his nature, and I was unwilling to risk all that keeping such knowledge secret protected. So instead I allowed myself to be overcome by the dry heat of the harsh desert sands, forcing my asura and the amorous chef to tend to me.

This continued until we reached the town the treacherous warlord, whose Devil Fruit granted him power over sand, had made his home. Once there I separated from the others, citing my weakness as a reason not to join in the assault. Then I sent forth my Phantom to watch over them and ensure the princess did not come to harm. The Phantom saw my captain and his crew imprisoned in a Sea Stone cage alongside the Marine Captain who had followed them from East Blue, where the warlord taunted them with his intentions. The princess was not imprisoned, but she was not strong enough to escape the warlord. The Phantom watched over her to ensure she was not fatally injured, and assisted her in her eventual escape from the room after the warlord had left. My servant then had those imprisoned sign a contract to guarantee their silence and freed them from the cage before vanishing again.

I rejoined my captain and his crew so that we could make haste to the capital city of the desert kingdom, where the princess' father lived and the focus of the warlord's plans. The warlord however attempted to abduct the princess again, which the captain foiled but in doing so was left behind. He promised to rejoin us later, so I trusted in his Will and did not stray from the path before me. Thus I assisted my asura and the rest of the crew in reaching the royal city of the desert kingdom and protected the princess until she reached her father's palace, where I handed her over to the royal guard. Then I sent my servant forth once more to defeat those who served the treacherous warlord and to protect those of my captain's crew, for my asura had grown ever dearer to me with every day that passed and our bond had deepened with every injury of his that I had healed. My heart was not yet committed, but I was sufficiently attached to take steps to delay his death as much as I could. My captain however proved his worth and Will by arriving in time to defeat the warlord and save the kingdom, so in gratitude we were invited into the palace to rest and recover. My first action was to heal my asura, who had almost died in securing his victory against the warlord's strongest subordinate. My second was to sleep, which I did in his arms.

It was two days before my captain woke and his first words were to demand his hat. His next sentence was to demand food, which was provided promptly and in quantities than only a pirate with a rubber stomach could countenance. Though I suspect my Kajin might match him, a furnace being just as insatiable.

"_Hey!"_

"_It is simply the truth, Kajin."_

After the banquet all of my captain's crew were granted use of the royal baths alongside those considered part of the royal family, namely the king, the princess and the princess' advisor. The men's and women's baths were separated by a tall partition, but that partition was not insurmountable and the men succumbed to their natures and climbed up to look over the top. They did so just as I was emerging from one of the hot pools, which incapacitated most of them; my climbing up the partition to return the favour and tease those still conscious completed the massacre. The navigator was not amused by my shamelessness and even less so by the actions of the male members of the crew; she made it clear afterwards that the event would never be referred to again.

The next day we left the desert kingdom, returning to the ship and setting sail for the next island the Log Pose pointed to. However as we left we were attacked by Marines and barely managed to escape, requiring me to pour more power into Merry to keep her afloat. It was not the first time I had healed the caravel and since first meeting the willing little ship it had grown a soul that my power was nurturing and granting ever increasing awareness to. While I have frequently tied living things to non-living ones in the past, this was my first experience with new souls born from loving hearts and I was both charmed and pained by Merry: charmed, because she shone so brightly and loved so clearly, but pained, because she was a ship built for the Blue Seas and the Grand Line was weakening her with every passing day. I did my best to heal her, but even then I knew she would not live for long.

It was after our escape that our stowaway emerged on deck, so I followed suit and ensured she could not harm the crew while our captain decided what to do with her. As it happened, his decision was to recruit her: she was an archaeologist with a desire to learn the true history of the world. So I released her and we sailed onwards.

The island our Pose pointed to was in the sky above us, which the navigator found incomprehensible as she had never heard of Sky Islands before. I had, but despite knowing I had spent many years on the Grand Line she did not ask me, so I said nothing. I did however not discourage my captain's insistence in finding a way to reach that island in the clouds even as we sailed to a nearby island where the navigator hoped to find out how to reach the place our Pose pointed to.

However as we drew closer to that island I sensed the presence of the man who had slain Fire-Fist's brother and found myself torn between keeping my word and waiting for my friend to ask for my help and ending the man's life right away. I eventually decided to keep my promise, an action I later had cause to regret.

* * *

A slight reprimand and the story continues, all the way to Mock Town.


	119. Narrative

**Narrative**

The silence in the room as Fox took another sip of her drink felt heavy with recrimination to Ace.

"You could have killed him then and there?" he murmured, his voice sounding small and lost even to his own ears. "But you held back? Because I made you promise?"

"Yes," Fox said simply.

"I wish I hadn't," Ace admitted quietly, staring down at his hands. He couldn't begin to imagine how differently things would have gone if Fox had quietly ended Blackbeard with a Sea Stone knife in the back all those months ago but he knew for sure that, no matter how angry he might have been at the time, he would have accepted it and things would have changed for the better. For one, his Pops would still be around. For another, he wouldn't have hurt his little brother so. And Thatch's grave would have a nice skull ornament decorating it.

"What's done is done," Fox said sadly, "and cannot be changed. Now since I didn't believe I could avoid killing the bastard if I actually saw him I remained behind on the ship and slept…"

* * *

I awoke when my captain and those of the crew who had disembarked returned, though my awakening was more due to the navigator's disgruntlement at having been mocked for asking after the Sky Islands than anything else. I took the time to confirm the existence of such islands and then the archaeologist returned with news of a man who could help our captain sail the ship up into the clouds. However as we sailed there we were attacked and Merry took more damage, damage that exhausted me greatly to mend. I therefore slept until late in the afternoon, waking to three men who were reinforcing the ship and modifying it so it could sail up into the clouds. I offered my assistance and listened eagerly to the tales the leader of the three told me of his ancestor's adventures and discoveries. When night fell my exhaustion caught up with me again and I headed back to bed, this time accompanied by a bird who had decided to adopt me.

I was woken in the night by pirates attacking, and not being in the mood to play I dispatched them with haki and injured their captain before driving them all off. I then went back to sleep and so missed the return of the rest of the crew, who had spent most of the time I lay sleeping searching for a bird of the very kind that had decided to keep me company. Then dawn came and we set out for the special current that we needed to ascend into the clouds: it was called the Knock-Up Stream, a sea current a little like a geyser that formed from a whirlpool and flowed upwards rather than forwards and could carry us up into the cloud our Log Pose pointed to.

We found the whirlpool and were sailing into it when the wicked man who had slain his brother appeared, chasing us. He wished to capture our captain for his bounty, which had risen after his actions in the desert kingdom, but before he could enter striking range the whirlpool became a geyser and we were thrown upward to sail vertically into the sky. I must admit that sailing _upwards_ was a truly exciting experience, once I have never had before and likely never will again. The sheer wonder of seeing the sea _behind_ rather than all around, with clouds ahead and the ship beneath my feet literally flying as the up-draught catches the sails and carries us above the surface of the current… there is nothing like it on earth.

However the environment in the millennium cumulonimbus, as such clouds are called, was quite unlike that on ground level and the creatures that live in it are similarly unlike. The abrupt change made me quite dizzy for some time, so my asura had to carry me into my cabin and put me to bed. Being more than a little drunk from altitude sickness, I let my growing attraction show and asked him to kiss me. He blushed very fetchingly, but agreed to do so as long as let him go back on deck afterwards. I agreed, and so I received my first kiss from the man who would later become my lover and give me the child I now carry. It wasn't more than a touch of lips, but it told me that he desired me with the same single-minded ferocity that he pursued his ambition with, which was dizzying in and of itself. It is a heady thing, to be wanted so completely.

As we sailed through the sea in the sky towards the island there I sensed a malevolent presence ahead of us: a haki user with a Devil Fruit Ability who was also quite mad with power. I hid myself from his sight and did my best to adapt quickly to the change in my surroundings, but I did not manage to do so fully until the ship arrived at a beach and the rest of the crew disembarked. I did not as I was not dressed for the climate, so I took the time to change. While in the Sky Islands I wore the clothes given to me by my people here on Mystoria, as from what I had learnt of the place from my Ability and my haki they were the most appropriate for the situation: the ruler of the Sky Island we had arrived at called himself a god and he was not a merciful or generous one. In fact he was tyrannical, cruel and utterly selfish.

I had just finished dressing when my asura came to check up on me. He admired my outfit–

"_I just bet he did."_

"_Kajin."_

"_Sorry for interrupting."_

–and suggested that, since the locals seemed to be rather hostile yet were not aware of my presence, I should stay hidden. I agreed, but took the time to tell him that I would not refuse him if he wished to kiss me again. It flustered him, which I found rather adorable; he is younger than I after all. The ship was then seized and carried off by a giant shrimp with myself, my asura, the reindeer doctor, the navigator and the archaeologist on board. Our crew had been threatened with 'Heaven's Judgement' for failing to pay a fee on arriving at the island and this was the beginning of it: we on board were being held hostage against our captain, the chef and the sniper, who had been left behind.

So as my captain and two of his nakama hurried to save those of us who had been taken away, we also did our best to escape. Well, the others did; our abduction damaged Merry rather badly and I had to take another nap in order to help her mend herself. I had spent so much energy putting her back together by this point that she was fully aware of everything going on around her, though I was the only person on board she could communicate with. However after so many repairs there was only so much I could do and after that I too left, the doctor remaining behind to guard the ship.

Unlike my asura, the archaeologist and the navigator however, I had a different purpose in mind to simply exploring or trying to find the rest of the crew. I was going to kill the god of the island, who had already proved to me that he was not worthy of such a title.

As I waited for the right moment to take action, I watched the rest of my crew reunite near the Merry after my captain defeated one of the god's priests. Then they all set out again the next morning for the 'city of gold' they had heard about from the man who had modified the ship for us. Unfortunately however they were separated, and some of the locals who were fighting against the god and his priests attacked the part of the island they were in. For the part of the Sky Island the god claimed as his own had once been part of the island down below on the Grand Line that we had stopped at before sailing into the sky. Rather than an island of soft cloud it was made of earth and stone with immense trees and gigantic wildlife. It was the island visited by the ancestor of the man who had worked on the Merry with me, an island with a city of gold and a great bell. But the Knock-Up Stream had blasted that part of the island into the sky, so now it sat in the clouds. The locals who were fighting against the god were descended from the ones who had been on the island when it was launched upwards and had been driven out of their homeland. Now, as my captain and his crew fought their way forwards, they too took the opportunity to attack. However they did not distinguish between the priests of their god and the crew my captain had gathered around him, seeing them all as intruders to be defeated. So battle after battle raged in the forest and the victors of each skirmish drew ever closer to the lost city in their search for the god of the island. My asura was injured, my captain was eaten alive by a giant snake, the cook and the sniper were struck down by the lightning that was the element the god could command and the doctor defeated a priest before being defeated in turn. Then when only five were left standing the god brought down the cloud they were battling upon to fall into the ruins hidden beneath, revealing that he had plundered the golden city for his own ends and intended to send the island tumbling back down into the sea below.

And I did not strike him down, for his time had not yet come.

The god then struck down all save the navigator, who feared him enough to pretend to go along with his plans, and took her with him to the ship he had built from the gold he had plundered. An airship to sail through the sky and powered by his Ability. Then the captain escaped from the stomach of the snake and chased after them to take back his navigator. The god tried to strike him down, but failed: my captain's body was rubber, making him immune to lightning. However the god did not rely on his power alone and defeated my captain. As he fell the chef and the sniper, who had recovered a little, boarded the ship in their own attempts to stage a rescue. They succeeded and the chef also managed to sabotage the vessel's inner workings, though both men were injured further. Then my captain attacked the god again, even as the lightning user's madness led him to utterly destroy the peninsula our ship had initially landed by, vaporising an entire town that had fortunately been evacuated as well as the clouds it had been built on.

My captain was defeated again, but he didn't let it stop him and attacked for a third time just as the god was trying to leave with the great golden bell. The bell had featured prominently in the stories the man who helped us had told, and my captain had decided to ring the bell so as to prove they had found the golden city. So this time rather than attack the god, my captain threw himself at the bell and knocked it flying.

As the bell flew, it rang and the moment came: I slew the god and knocked him down to the stones of the city he had despoiled, taking off his head so it tumbled in the dust. Then I set about healing those injured during the fighting and saving what lives I could, for though bringing death is the skill I am most proficient at, I much prefer restoring life to snuffing it out. Any fool can kill, but healing of any kind is a great challenge.

Once news got out that the god was dead a celebration began, with many of my patients joining in as soon as I had finished with them. Once I had tended to all those with severe injuries I too joined in the festivities, which went on for three whole days. All celebrated together and the rift between the Sky Islanders and those who were descended from the people of the golden city was closed. My asura also confessed his feelings for me and we began courting. Then the time came for us to leave and we sailed back down to the Grand Line, using a gigantic octopus as a balloon to slow our descent.

My captain and the rest of the crew celebrated our successful return to sea level, but my heart was heavy and I wept bitterly, for I knew something they did not: our ship was dying. It grieved me terribly to keep it secret but Merry did not want her crew to worry about her and she was as dear to me as a child by that point so I could not refuse her. I told my asura, but he agreed to keep the secret until we could find a shipwright.

We landed near Long Ring Long Land, and soon found ourselves embroiled in a game of Davy Back.

* * *

This is taking a while to tell and I've now written over 200,000 words of this story! Can't believe it! I've only been writing Unintended Consequences for about two months!


	120. Recital

**Recital**

Davy Back is a pirate game, played between two pirate captains where the winner of each round gets to pick a member of the loser's crew to join his own ship. Of course, being a pirate game, everything not strictly forbidden by the rules is permitted, and even those forbidden things can be overlooked if you are not caught. My captain agreed to three games: we lost the first but won the next two, thus winning back the crew member who had been forfeited in the first match and my captain decided that as his prize for the final victory he wanted his challenger's flag. So we won and remained on the island a little longer as our challengers departed, but as we wandered we encountered a certain ice Logia who was familiar with my captain's archaeologist and decided that the crew assembled by the straw-hat pirate with the Will to rule had too great a potential to be permitted to live any longer. So he injured my asura, my captain and the chef, froze the archaeologist solid and then tried to shatter her. I managed to get her away in time and fled with her back to the ship to defrost her; the ice Logia did not pursue me but instead allowed my captain to challenge him to a duel. My captain lost, but was not killed: just as I had defrosted the archaeologist my asura brought him to me and the ship's doctor for treatment, frozen solid.

"_You ran into Aokiji?!"_

"_Kajin…"_

"_Yeah. Right. Sorry."_

"After both captain and archaeologist were out of danger the crew confronted me on what the ice Logia had said to me. I let my captain decide which questions he wanted answers to, and to my delight he proved uninterested in my parentage and business connections, wanting only to know how I had come to meet his own grandfather and the identity of another pirate I had mentioned. This reassured me that my decision to follow the pirate with the Will to rule had been a good one, for he saw me for myself and not my connections or abilities. We then sailed onwards, arriving at an island famed for its shipwrights where the navigator sought out someone to mend Merry for us. I did not say a word of my suspicions that the dear caravel who bore us so willingly could not be fixed; she had asked me not to and I did not think I would be believed.

Once we had dropped anchor the crew separated: my captain, the navigator and the sniper went to exchange the gold taken from the Sky Island for cash then in search of shipwrights, archaeologist and doctor went shopping, I and the chef went to visit my own contacts so I could sell my wares and acquire funds of my own and my asura remained on board to guard the ship. In disguising myself before leaving I found that Fire Fist had left his spare hat with me; not the first time he had left his clothing in my possession. I decided to wear it, as it did a good job of disguising my appearance. Then I set off.

On returning I discovered the shipwright had visited in my absence and declared Merry unfixable; I also learnt the archaeologist had vanished and two-thirds of the money from the gold had been stolen. My captain initially wished to deny that his ship was no longer fit to sail, but he soon understood the situation and was willing to lay Merry to rest and replace her. However the sniper was not, and started a fight which led to him leaving the crew. I felt deeply hurt by his betrayal and angered by his denial of the situation, so I asked my captain for permission to track down his missing crew-mate and was granted it. I found her in the company of hitmen in the employ of the government, so I tracked their movements carefully before returning to the hotel my captain had moved his crew to and sleeping in my asura's arms, needing his presence away from the security of a ship.

The next day it was revealed that our missing archaeologist had participated in the attempted murder of the most influential shipwright on the island and, as part of the same crew, we were considered complicit. However as only the captain and my asura had bounty posters, the rest of us were reasonably safe from retribution. Considering the nature of the accusations I took the time to retrieve anything that might be considered suspicious from our rooms before taking a little time to think.

My situation was becoming precarious: the ice Logia who had seen me in the company of my captain and his crew was unlikely to keep that information to himself. My parentage made my position more precarious and my profession means I must remain above reproach or else risk permanent house arrest under the excuse of 'protection'. Therefore I needed another face to assist my captain with. My phantom servant would attract too much attention and was unsuited to the task in hand, so I created a new aspect of self: she is called the Angel of Death, and it suits her. I thus embodied this new aspect throughout my captain's eventual confrontation with the hitmen who had pressured the archaeologist into leaving and assumed it in many later interactions with those not belonging to my captain's crew.

So it was that even after we pursued the hitmen into the fortress of my captain's enemies and slew them within their own stronghold, even as my asura and the rest of the crew defeated every last one of the hitmen as I found and freed the archaeologist, I was not recognised. Even after our triumphant return to the island of shipwrights and reconciliation with those who had believed us guilty of attacking one of their citizens, none thought to connect the wild destructiveness of the Angel of Death with the quiet watchfulness of the warlord's daughter. But when we returned our hearts were heavy, for we had been saved at the end by Merry, whose awareness had grown so much that she could steer herself and speak aloud. It grieved me terribly that it was her last act: we held a funeral for her at sea before the shipwrights who had followed us brought us back to the island. I do not know what happened in that time, as the strain of losing one so dear to me overcame me and I did not wake until the morning after our return.

Yet many good things came of that incident, terrible though it was. My captain came face to face with the harsher aspect of my nature and accepted it without question or hesitation. The sniper acted in a way to begin to redeem his former foolishness and the archaeologist learnt that she truly wished to continue living. My captain also gained the respect of a shipwright, who on our return offered to make a ship for him free of charge. I also grew closer to my asura afterwards and he became my lover.

In that quiet time after the battle my captain's grandfather also came to visit him and informed him of the identity of his father, the father who had rescued him before he even entered Paradise yet not been seen. My captain however was unmoved by the knowledge that his father was the Revolutionary Dragon; he believes that who a person was depended solely on themselves, not their family background. The ice Logia also visited for a quiet word, though I did not mention his presence to anyone else. Then the new bounty posters were released, the ship was finished and it was time to leave. However my captain succeeded in recruiting the shipwright who had built our ship, so that he might achieve his dream of sailing and caring for his masterpiece. The sniper also apologised for his foolishness and was permitted to rejoin the crew.

However shortly after leaving the island of shipwrights we found ourselves in the Florian Triangle, where a warlord who commanded shadows was secretly building himself an army of animated corpses. These corpses were animated by shadows stolen from strong fighters and cunning warriors, who after losing such a vital part of their being could never stray into sunlight again, as they would die. The shadows of my captain, my asura and the chef were all stolen and they had to act quickly not only to defeat the warlord, but do so before the sun rose. They did ultimately succeed, but at great cost and only after receiving many injuries. Then another warlord appeared on the scene intending to take away our captain with the Will to rule so that he could not further disrupt the government with his dreams. My asura prevented it, offering himself in the captain's place. The warlord accepted the deal and transferred all the pain and fatigue the captain had suffered onto my asura, then left. The transferral killed my lover, but I did not let him leave me; I could not. I loved him.

* * *

Ace had been hooked on the story ever since she'd started on the parts that had occurred after he left Alabasta and his diligent reading of the newspaper in that time –due to seeking news of Blackbeard– helped him fill in all the blanks and the parts she was glossing over. She'd barely touched on Enies Lobby, for instance. Hearing about the Sky Island that featured occasionally in her dreams had been very interesting though, particularly since he could also see the memories recounting her adventures had conjured up.

Fox was also a damn fine storyteller, as evidenced by the point she'd chosen to take a break and have a drink in.

"I have missed hearing your stories, Rokuseizon-sama," Truei said with a warm smile, sipping her own drink. "You breathe life into your tales in a way few ever achieve."

"Flattery, Truei," Fox reprimanded her gently. "I am not the best of storytellers and I am not giving events the attention they deserve. But you wanted the full story, so I am covering the important parts to the best of my ability. Perhaps later there will be time for a more in-depth account of each adventure."

"I would like that," the woman agreed, glancing sideways at her husband who had not uttered a word since apologizing for the earlier interruption when he had recognised Ace. Sako did not say anything, simply watching the flame Logia and his lover with a thoughtful intensity.

"I could tell some stories about how I met her and stuff we've done together since," Ace offered, willing to join in the fun even though a good number of said stories placed him in a not-so-good light. Looking back, he'd been the hothead she'd called him: touchy, fiery-tempered and with barely any idea of how to interact with normal people. His sisters had helped with some of that, but Fox had done more. He'd really mellowed recently.

"That might be fun," Fox agreed, smiling. "A lot of those stories are pretty funny." Some of them were and a lot of the funny ones had given Marco headaches. Ace had heard him muttering about how Mihawk would kill them if he heard about this or that. Like the skinny-dipping; admittedly he might have gone a bit too far in stealing Fox' bikini, but it wasn't like she'd _minded_. Seeing her soaking wet, wearing in his hat and nothing else had kept him warm at night for weeks afterwards. Then there were the inevitable games of strip poker, the drinking games, the times she dragged him into helping her wash her hair, and that time a storm had delayed laundry day for a week and she'd gone around for two days in his shirts, borrowed trousers and bare feet because Swift Hunter couldn't surface and all her other things were wet or ruined. Note that it had been tipping it down with rain and the shirt and trousers really had been _all_ she was wearing… Ace smirked. He'd enjoyed those two days in spite of the dreadful weather and he hadn't been the only one doing so either.

Of course, there were also all the times she'd tricked him into making a fool of himself, the never-ending verbal traps he fell for, waking up after a narcoleptic fit to find she'd messed him about in some way or stolen his food, one-upping him while sparring, sneaking on board and into his bed in the middle of the night so he woke up wrapped around his mostly-naked best friend with hands in all the wrong places –there had been times he was inordinately grateful she was a heavy sleeper– as well as her being generally female and frustrating. "No naming names though," he decided. "I don't want anyone coming after me."

* * *

And we get to the bits her audience are really interested in. Oh, and a little of the kind of things Ace and Fox used to get up to together.


	121. Strings

**Strings**

First I will say that it is impossible to bring a dead person back to life; this is what truly separates humans and associated beings from animals and plants. I can kill a dog, let it lie on the ground for an hour and then put it back together and return life to it as though it never died but once the soul has fled, the body of a person is no more than an empty shell, even if it breathes and responds to external stimuli. What I did was therefore not resurrection; I did not bring my lover back to life. Rather I caught his soul before it could leave, trapped it within my own body and then infused myself within my asura, healing him from the inside while holding his soul in place. Doing so caused our souls to adhere, expanding the bond that already existed between mind and body to encompass the spiritual aspect of our selves. He and I became a single being with two wills, two minds and two bodies yet a single soul. This tricked his body into surviving, as where before he had possessed a single set of organs, all heavily damaged; now he was aware of two full sets half of which were in full working order. This convinced his subconscious mind that death was not feasible, so he survived.

So I pulled my lover back from the brink of death and bound him to myself for as long as we both live. The changes in both of us were immediately apparent: my asura wandered through my mind so long in his unconsciousness that he lost much of his physical awareness and had trouble adapting to his own body and limited number of limbs. I on the other hand moved instinctively to balance him when he stumbled, responded to him without ever hearing a request aloud and we both moved together like a parts of a single being. It took well over a week of rigorous training to reach a stage where we were no longer liabilities to our captain and even then we had moments of clumsiness.

That was not however the only problem I was faced with: while my captain and the crew faced the shadow warlord the letter I had written to Fire Fist had been returned to me alongside his hat and a newspaper, which told me something that filled me with dread. My dear friend had been captured and handed over to the Marines and was due to be executed. I had hoped my captain would hurry to his rescue, but in his ignorance the young pirate with the Will to rule decided that his brother's adventures were his own and that the older man would not appreciate his younger sibling hurrying to assist him. I wished he had decided otherwise, but could not oppose his decision, so I made do with writing to everyone I could think of, begging or demanding help for my friend.

So I sailed on with my asura, our captain and his crew in our new ship, which was called Sunny. Sailed onwards until we came in sight of the Red Line, where Paradise ends, and made our way to the Yarukiman Groves. I was pleased to have reached this far, as my mother dwells among the mangroves with her household and I longed to see her face-to-face again. I also wished to introduce my lover to her, hoping she would approve of my choice. She did not precisely approve, but neither did she disapprove. I took that as hopeful but was then informed of my own pregnancy, which I had not noticed. It came a shock to my asura as well, but he recovered well and swore to protect me and do his part in raising our child. However it was not to be: scant hours later my captain's entire crew was scattered to the winds by the warlord who had all but killed my lover little over a week before, separated by miles of open sea and all hopelessly lost.

I was sent to Red-Hair, who I have known since childhood, and he took me in without question. My asura found himself on the island my father calls home, though my father was not there, having been called away by the powers he serves in preparation for the execution of Fire Fist. My captain awoke on the home of the Pirate Empress and somehow won her affection, though I'm not entirely sure how that came about.

_Wait, wait, wait… Boa Hancock fancies Luffy? My little brother? My blunt, dumb, disrespectful baby brother?"_

"_She's completely smitten: blushes every time he talks to her, swoons whenever he does or says anything remotely friendly."_

"_Hot damn."_

Before we were torn from one another I ensured my captain would be able to call me to his side if he needed me, which he did so a few days later to ask my help in rescuing Fire Fist, whose plight he had just discovered. I was forced to decline: I had promised my asura that I would be careful during my pregnancy. However I had a plan to assist my captain regardless. I gave my captain a means to summon my phantom servant and instructed him in how to word his requests, so that if he found himself in need of an assassin's aid he would not be caught short. Then I returned to Red-Hair and waited. Waiting is the hardest part of any campaign.

Indeed, my captain summoned my servant to the battlefield to defend Fire Fist and even managed to free his older brother, but at the last moment the older pirate was struck down, dying in my servant's arms. However my captain's last order –to keep his brother from death no matter what– remained and so my servant brought Fire Fist to me and I took his soul into myself for safekeeping as I threw myself into healing his devastating injuries. So it was that Fire Fist died, for his soul left his body and the body he eventually returned to was not the same as the one he had left, the healing necessary having changed it beyond recognition. So it was that my best friend was bound to me as my asura had been, and they to each-other.

* * *

Sako did not immediately speak once his goddess' change in posture indicated the story was over, nor did he move from his thoughtful study of her and her consort.

"You have loved this one for a long time, have you not Rokuseizon-sama?" he said eventually. "You called him your friend but you would have done anything for him."

"Friends love one another, Sako," his goddess said calmly, sipping her drink. "Friends also look out for each-other."

Sako shifted his line of attack slightly. "Kajin-dono, you have loved her for years now have you not? Such a deep bond could not form quickly. You desired her long before this new closeness brought you together."

The indigo-haired man shifted uncomfortably. "She's who she is," he muttered. "What's not to love?"

"I always had an inkling that he found me lovely to look at," his goddess said candidly, making her consort redden, "but he is male and I am reliably informed that I have a stunning body that any man would kill for a chance to get his hands on."

Sako chuckled. "You really do." He leered teasingly. "You should show it off more often." His wife snorted next to him and his goddess laughed aloud, shaking her head.

"I am six months pregnant Sako and swollen like a balloon. Not so lovely to look at right now."

"Asura wishes you to know that he finds you current figure _extremely_ sexy," Kajin said, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively, "and is willing to prove it later."

Sako watched his goddess giggle, the bright sound lightening his heart. He loved the woman he had named dearly, but he had never been able to coax that kind of pure joy out of her.

"You said reliably informed," Kajin said, "so who told you exactly?"

The smirk on Rozuseizon's face was pure mischief. "A certain redhead."

Kajin choked. "He said _that?!_"

"I was seventeen, going through residual body issues that had finally surfaced as a result of my time in captivity and he cornered me in the bath and made it quite clear that I was one of the sexiest women he had ever seen."

Sako stared in bemusement as the large, blue-haired man spluttered, his face scarlet. He guessed there was something going on between his goddess and her consort, but it was too subtle for him to read.

"And yes, he really did _all_ that," his goddess added, smiling slyly. "Let's just say my body issues died a death and leave it at that, hm?"

"What is it with you and Shanks?" Kajin muttered grumpily. The pale goddess tugged on his hair.

"He was the first person I met who really made me feel safe. Not just safe to sleep at night like Marco did, but safe to do stupid things with and mess around and live dangerously with. I know he'll never hurt me and I have a soft spot for him that he is not above teasing me about. He loves to tweak my father's tail, so he often takes things a little further than he probably should but it's all in good fun. He isn't in love with me and I'm not in love with him, but we care and we bring out the worst in each-other at times. He's sort-of family, sort-of not and he plays both sides of that fence for all it's worth." She paused pensively. "He was my first crush and I never really grew out of it. It's all of those things and none of them."

Sako understood. There were all kinds of love in the world, binding it together with strings of all colours and thicknesses. His goddess loved the man she spoke of as a damaged student loves a patient teacher who helped them grow into themselves, and he loved her in return with a love that healed and uplifted. A strong bond, but altogether different to the deep, passionate and powerful force that bound her to her consorts.

"Why didn't you join Shanks crew?"

Sako's goddess smiled wistfully. "I'd never have stepped out of that safety and tested myself until I was too old to enjoy the risks," she said sadly. "I wanted to grow and I couldn't do that if I clung to those who made me feel safe. Think about it Kajin: how much would I have missed out on? My father is who he is and my mother is just as precious to me, but Shanks has always been home."

Kajin blinked. "Ah. I get it." He looked up at her. "Sorry."

"It's fine. I don't exactly do conventional relationships."

Sako chuckled. "Rokuseizon-sama, in relationships the mere idea of 'conventional' is a myth. There is no such thing. People talk about it but the truth is that there is love, which wears a hundred thousand different guises. How people subdivide that love for their own mental comfort is purely subjective."

His goddess smiled radiantly. "Thank-you Sako."

* * *

The end of the story and a little more of Fox' history with Shanks. No, there was no sex, but there's more to intimacy than that.


	122. Revelry

**Revelry **

Ace wasn't sure how it had come up, but Fox had asked him if he wanted anything in particular for his birthday, since it was in the upcoming week, and suddenly Sako's wife Truei had insisted the islanders throw him a real party a few days after the upcoming banquet. Then she had dashed off, calling out names and spouting off instructions to the people summoned. Then he had been assaulted by women with knotted string and strips of fabric, been sketched, asked a barrage of questions about all manner of odd things –why did it matter if he had a pet? He'd mentioned Beastie which had satisfied them– and dragged away by an old lady. The old lady had bribed him with food, persuaded him to show off a bit to an audience of eager children –not that he'd needed much encouragement– then started an inquisition into his past, his relatives, his past exploits and just about everything else he'd ever done or thought. Having twigged by this point that this was the equivalent of getting grilled by your fiancée's grandma regarding your suitability, Ace had employed all of his intelligence, manners and natural charm to answer politely, coherently and mostly honestly without giving his previous identity away or naming too many names.

Having Fox' storytelling as an example to follow, his listeners were soon attentively following a slightly disjointed tale of his quest through the Grand Line to find a place where he belonged –which had secretly been the real reason, not the fame and acclaim he'd told Luffy he wanted– and gaining his fire powers, which his audience likely took as 'discovering' rather than 'eating Devil Fruit'. He told them of finding relatives among the mermaids, being welcomed as a son by his Pops and the first three times he'd encountered Fox, which all the children found very funny. He then followed on into stories of day-to-day like on the Moby Dick, the shenanigans he'd got up to when Fox visited and various other odds and ends. Of course, since he was trying to keep the number of names at a minimum Marco had become an actual phoenix who was his Pop's second-in-command, Namur was a shark, Atmos was a water buffalo and so on. Ace was aware his tall tales did sound rather like some of the myths Sabo had talked about, which made the whole situation more surreal.

* * *

He was getting hoarse despite being constantly plied with cups of palm wine and the sun was starting to set when Truei found him, informed all those present it was time to get ready for the banquet and led him back up the hill to the temple complex where he was 'helped' into a brand new pair of leather trousers decorated with red and white geometric patterns and pushed onto a stool so a teenage boy could brush his hair and do something to it. Ace put up with the indignity of being treated like a dress-up doll, sensing Fox was going through something similar but far more time-consuming that involved multiple layers, heavy jewellery and a hairdo that four different women were working on. At least he was only expected to wear trousers, gold armbands and whatever they were putting in his own hair.

He even let the young warrior who entered the room a few minutes later with a bowl of dark red paste draw on him; he was kinda curious what the point was, but the flickering designs that coiled up from his waistline and down from his shoulders looked a lot like they were supposed to be flames and were pretty cool really. The flame Logia was a little concerned when the red paste started to dry and crack, but the man who'd applied the designs simply brushed the dried paste away to reveal the patterns had been stained directly onto his skin and looked much brighter than the paste itself had. The boy working on his hair then stopped fiddling and he was led outside again.

He had to catch his breath as he did so: his lover looked stunning. Wearing a gown with a low neck and a high waist that showed off both her increased bust and prominent stomach, with slits up the sides to the hip that revealed another skirt underneath, Fox glowed with health and life. She was wearing at least six times as much jewellery as he was, from anklets and toe-rings through bracelets and belts to the myriad hair ornaments and golden crown on the top of her head. Someone had also outlined her eyes in kohl, making her golden irises seem larger and more prominent.

"You look amazing," he said with a grin, reaching out to wrap an arm around her waist. The procession headed over towards the main temple square, where a bonfire was already lit and the smell of food was steadily dominating the background scents of dry rainforest, sea salt and people.

"Be grateful you're male," Fox muttered. "Men hunt, train and go to war and later discuss law and the running of the tribes; women farm, raise the next generation and later keep the histories. Being the peaceful face of the tribes they also wear all the ornaments."

"You're a goddess of war as well though, aren't you?" Ace pointed out quietly as their arrival prompted a massive cheer and food was handed out. He had seen the statue in one of the shrines: barely wearing any jewellery at all, armed with a sword in one hand and a knife in the other and tiny mutilated corpses carved all over its plinth.

"No: I'm a goddess of life and death. Life and death are universal, just as prominent in times of peace as in war, so I'm generally portrayed as peaceful," his lover whispered back as she accepted a selection of food. "Unless the island's under attack, of course."

Ace nodded, his mouth full of meat. The food earlier had been good, but this was absolutely fantastic! Not wanting to talk with his mouth full, he addressed his lover mind-to-mind:

_What are your aspects again? I know there's the main one and three minor ones but what are they?_

Fox made a slight movement of her shoulders that might have been amusement or fondness. _My main aspect is life, namely healing, nurturing and growing: a very female aspect and the statue in the main temple. My lesser aspects are for battle, which you were thinking of just now, sudden death and transformation. Sudden death has no face, no weapons and is followed by a white fox; transformation has a sea snake tail rather than legs, an Eternal Pose in one hand and very wild hair._

Ace swallowed. "You know, they do fit," he pointed out as he scooped up some curry in a piece of flat bread.

"Sako has a gift," Fox said lightly, dipping some prawns in a spicy sauce. "They've started work on your statue, you know."

Ace didn't mind being the centre of attention, he didn't mind telling stories or being plied with food and alcohol and could put up with people dressing him up. A statue however was a bit much. "Seriously?"

Fox' chin dipped as she chewed. _You will likely get your 'divine' name on your birthday so it should be finished by then. I believe they have decided on you being a god of fire with the duality of protection and destruction: the hearth fire and the fire that clears away the underbrush with the possibility of the fierce wildfire and utter desolation if offended. Asura however has been firmly placed as a high-level demon of fear, darkness and slaughter who is to be appeased rather than appealed to. Hopefully meeting him in person sometime will calm a few fears._

Ace chuckled. Right now he was far more powerful than Zoro and he would always be more dangerous as his Ability was greatly suited to mass destruction. Asura however lived for violence in a way the flame Logia did not and he was only kind to Fox and the occasional little kid. Even when he was trying to be kind he came across as brisk and grumpy, which didn't help his image. _Poor guy._

_I did try to explain that he loved me and our child dearly, but I get the impression they filed that under 'incredibly possessive',_ Fox responded as she chewed some spiced mango.

Ace snickered, shook his head and took advantage of the fact that, being a guest of honour, everyone was bringing him food rather than trying to keep it out of his reach. Zoro was intimidating because he was strong and didn't bother to hide it, like his Pops hadn't. Shanks was scarier in some ways because you'd never know exactly how powerful he was until you pissed him off, at which point you abruptly learnt that he was at the very least stronger than you were. That lesson however tended to be final; Ace had never seen it in person but Fox had, and he'd seen her memory of it. He had immediately made a note to never, ever do anything that made the redheaded Yonko stop smiling: the flame Logia was strong but not that strong. Not yet.

* * *

As to the tricky matter of timing: allowing for travel time between arcs I estimate Luffy to have left Fuusha Village on his birthday -May 5th- and have arrived at Sabaody with his crew about halfway through September or slightly later. This puts the War of the Best early in the first week of October and the ringing of the Ox Bell three weeks after that, so lets the 26th of October.

Fox conceived almost four weeks before the War of the Best: the first week of September. She is due to give birth in the first week of June. As she is now almost at the end of her second Trimester, it is currently late February. Yes, Ace' birthday is the first of January but Fox moved it back ten months to when he _should_ have been born so that Edward D. Spadille didn't have the same birthday as the son of Gol D. Roger. Thus, our Kajin has skipped his 21st birthday altogether and is about to be 22 on March 1st. Fox was 22 on September 17th six months earlier, the day after Kuma sent her flying; Zoro was 20 on November 11th, shortly after starting his training.

Thus, when the Straw-Hats reunite Fox will be 24, not 23.


	123. Humdrum

**Humdrum **

Ace ducked the rock aimed at the back of his head, dodged the staff his opponent was wielding and blocked a kick with a Reinforced palm, all his attention focussed on not losing track of what he was supposed to be doing. After his birthday party and naming –he was now addressed by all and sundry as 'Homusubi-dono' and was mostly resigned to it– Fox had presented him to the leader of her temple guard and asked that he be integrated into their training so as to improve and refine his control over haki alongside his staff fighting skills. The grizzled old warrior had looked delighted and immediately made the flame Logia's life hell; for the past week he'd had rocks thrown at him and been bashed over the head and tripped and bruised by the startlingly spry man and his minions, all of whom used Busoshoku haki in order to actually hit him. Ace had improved quickly after initially losing his temper and subsequently being scolded like a child, which had been embarrassing. Now he'd got into the swing of things he didn't mind the harsh training too much; it was certainly better than what Fox was doing and the shitty old bastard at least explained what he wanted done before resorting to violence, unlike Garp.

Fox was spending her days listening to every disagreement, grudge and family feud that had surfaced since her previous visit and that Sako had not been able to resolve, blessing children, performing health checkups –the latter two often at the same time– and being appealed to as the voice of authority by everyone old enough to articulate their requests, no matter how trivial. The flame Logia could see his lover didn't mind being called upon to judge who had won a fishing contest or a swimming race, but she had little patience for the two older men who had come to blows several times over who exactly had greater rights to a particular grove of trees. Then there were a few paternity disputes she'd been asked to resolve, a number of criminals to be sentenced and some pirates who'd tried to loot and pillage to make an example of.

With a workload like that, Ace wasn't surprised that Fox insisted on being given the afternoons off and spent her limited free time alone in her rooms above her temple, enjoying the solitude. While she wasn't quite as reclusive as her father, his lover was not what you could call a social butterfly. He wasn't surprised that she tried to keep visits here at a minimum: Mystoria's inhabitants were incredibly welcoming, but it was all too much for someone like Fox for whom a conversation with four people in it was 'crowded'.

He agreed however that Sako was the right person to leave baby Moth with once Fox and Zoro had to rejoin Luffy in a year and a half; the man was very sharp and a good parent to his sons and daughter. His partner agreed: he'd felt Asura watching from behind his eyes regularly so as to get a good feel for the locals and the situation and the younger man had slowly and grudgingly come to the conclusion that Mystoria was as safe as his daughter was going to get. Yes, the New World was dangerous, but with her there Ace could reach her quickly if things went really wrong and the Temple Guard were very competent. The flame Logia ducked another staff blow, hit back and lost his weapon to a well-timed twist and kick that he almost managed to avoid. Rolling through the dust Ace bounced back to his feet, stretched cautiously and got hit on the back of the head with a rock.

"Oi!" he shouted, waving a fist at the grizzled warrior behind him. "The hell?"

"You lost your focus Homusubi-dono!" The shitty old bastard reprimanded him in his creaky voice. "More dodging practice!"

Ace cursed as all the other warriors stopped their drills to turn and throw things at him; it wasn't his fault he sucked at Kenbunshoku haki! His Busoshoku wasn't great either, but he was better at it despite having been training it for less time and he had been forbidden from using his Haoshoku haki until Tempest had taught him how to do so properly. He didn't use it deliberately, but sometimes he got so pissed off it came out anyway, which inevitably got him bonked on the head for losing control. He was much, much better at noticing when he was actually using it than he'd ever been, but he still wasn't any closer to controlling the damn stuff. Tempest had written back and promised to meet them at Redrock Reef within the next two weeks, so hopefully he'd get a chance to train his Haoshoku to the point he was allowed to use it in spars.

* * *

As she listened to yet another round of petty bickering, Fox was reminded why she tried not to visit Mystoria more than once a year despite several of her favourite people living there.

"So the problem is not who _owns_ the trees, but that you both feel the other is getting more out of them than you are," she said, interrupting the men attempting to justify their covetousness and jealousy. "So I feel the best solution is to grant land ownership to a third party so that neither of you has access." She waved to the warriors on guard, who instantly stepped forward to escort the shocked petitioners out of the temple; it seemed she was not the only person tired of hearing them bicker. "Sako, don't the young couple whose fathers insisted on disowning them live near there? I'll entrust the trees to them for their firstborn."

"A most excellent solution, Rokuseizon-sama," Sako murmured. "I have heard that argument rehashed so many times I could probably recite it in my sleep."

"You wife would not appreciate it," Fox reminded him, face bland. "Now that is finally dealt with, I believe I have a few children to grant an audience to; something about a dispute on the nature of family?"

Sako smiled fondly. "Ah, yes: they petitioned properly and everything. I'll fetch them." She could tell her friend thought the children's official petition was rather adorable; not that she disagreed when the oldest of the group was only just five.

* * *

Upon mooring his submarine at the long jetty that hit land amongst a small collection of huts just visible amongst the trees, Trafalgar Law realised that he wasn't sure how to go about finding his patient. On all previous occasions she'd been the one to come to him; the role reversal was slightly surprising.

"Greetings!" The pirate captain turned to see a man in his twenties climbing out of the sea a few yards away, a small net full of pearls hanging from his belt.

"Greetings," Law said, noting the developed muscles from a lifetime of heavy work as well as those that could only be a result of combat training. "I was asked to come here by a pregnant woman with very long white hair. Have you seen her?"

The man's face lit up. "You were invited by Rokuseizon-sama? Please come ashore; I will send a runner at once! Do you need provisions? Food? Anything else?"

Law waved Bepo over. "Bepo, see to the reprovisioning," he said calmly, watching the pearl fisher to see how he reacted. There was, in fact, no reaction.

"I will ensure you are given the best we can offer," the man said happily before turning and dashing down the jetty at a dead run towards the settlement. Law ducked his head thoughtfully. How intriguing.

* * *

After leaving the island the following morning, Law shut himself in his office next to the operating theatre and laughed out loud, leaning heavily on the desk for support. He'd known from the outset that Fox was interesting, that she likely had all manner of fascinating secrets squirreled away alongside all manner of useful knowledge, but he hadn't expected anything quite like this.

He chuckled again into his hand. "A goddess… who'd have thought it?" he mused, dropping into his chair with a sigh. "A whole island of loyal followers, willing to leap to her assistance at any time." It was an incredible asset. True, most of the locals had never left the island before but the entire population worshipped her unquestioningly and would leave in a heartbeat if she asked it of them. He'd also noticed a surprisingly high proportion of haki users among the otherwise primitive community and learnt that was her doing as well: all children were taught to access and use their haki from the age of five, with advanced lessons available for those who joined the Temple Guard or the priesthood. This standard had only been in place for seven years but the result was a community of potentially very dangerous people that was just reaching the point where those with the benefit of early training were starting to filter into active adult roles within their society. In another decade the entire island would have a greater concentration of haki adepts than anywhere else on the Grand Line.

Haki adepts Fox could call on whenever she wished and for whatever purpose she desired. Yes, agreeing to become her doctor had been a very good decision; he'd have to find a way to prolong the alliance.

* * *

Homusubi is one of the names given to Kagu-Tsuchi, which I appropriated. Law hasn't seen Spadille yet, though he's probably heard about him from the locals.


	124. Enlightenment

**Enlightenment**

Marco drummed his fingers nervously on the ship's rail, staring out at the grey, misty drizzle that surrounded them. He and the rest of the Whitebeard Pirates –except for the absent Ace– had been lying low, hiding out on islands a little way inside the Calm Belts while they mourned and decided what to do next. In that time he'd got to know Edward Tempest, his Pops' oldest daughter, pretty well. In true mermaid fashion she looked almost nothing like Whitebeard, though there was something in the shape of her eye-sockets and cheekbones that reminded Marco of his captain when she turned her head a certain way. That was probably due to her being only half-mermaid.

As the months passed Marco had gradually become aware that Tempest was not the only one of the mermaids hanging around to be related to Pops, or indeed the only one with a pirate parent. Other than Gol D. Spitfire –who was impossible to ignore no matter how depressed you were– and Tempest there were Miranda, Medea and Mermera who were also his Pops' kids and therefore his sisters, Scopper Hydra –another infamous surname– and Calico Belle, who was the oldest mermaid at fifty and inevitably accompanied by one or the other of her twin daughters Cherie and Sirena. He'd seen at least two dozen more, all younger and not inclined to reveal their surnames at all despite admitting freely to pirate heritage. This profusion of proof that any number of famous –and not so famous– pirates had sired mermaid children had gradually led Marco to wonder whether he had ever left any of his past conquests with a nine-month surprise. He had seduced his way through a good portion of Fishman Island's female population over the years after all.

When he'd finally posed that question to Tempest she'd given him a thoughtful look, then asked if he was asking just for himself or on behalf of the rest of the crew as well. "After all," the curly ginger pointed out, "it's easier to get all the information together once than do it again and again for different people."

Marco hadn't thought of that. He promptly cornered Jozu with the matter, who had agreed they needed to at least confirm they _didn't_ have kids, and then Izo, who agreed that everyone should be made aware of the possibility. Izo then pointed out that Fox was a mermaid's child but had legs, meaning she had a human grandparent as well, and she probably wasn't the only one out there like that. The rest of the Division Commanders had been summoned, news had spread and eventually every last pirate had put their name on a roll of paper to indicate their interest in learning the identities of their children, if they had any. Tempest had stressed that no commitment was necessary; this was simply a matter of identifying the existence of children. Acknowledging said eventual children was a secondary matter and entirely up to them.

That had been three weeks ago and rather than bringing answers, Marco and his brothers had been directed to an island in the middle of Shanks' territory where the information was being kept after the War of the Best; the Ryugu Archives were apparently no longer sufficiently secure for such sensitive information involving so many innocents.

However if he hadn't been assured there was an island here Marco wouldn't have believed it: he'd seen nothing but fog and sea drizzle for the past four days and the wind was almost non-existent, not blowing reliably from any quarter. There wasn't even a handy sea current, forcing them to tow the Moby Dick with the paddle boats in the direction indicated by their meticulous triangulation. The maps swore there was a big fat nothing in this area but Marco trusted Tempest not to send them on a wild goose chase, so they were persevering.

"Marco the Phoenix?"

Marco jumped back from the speaker of those calm, polite words right next to his ear; he was the strongest pirate on board and one of the best at using haki, but he was _sure_ there hadn't been anybody there a second ago. The split-tailed Sea Dragon mermaid with wavy amethyst hair raised an eyebrow at him.

"Yes and you are?" Marco managed.

The mermaid smiled. "Silvers Astera; I'm in charge of guarding this area. Tempest mentioned you'd be coming so this is just a courtesy call." She grinned toothily, making her look disturbingly similar to the first mate of the Roger Pirates who had thrashed Marco repeatedly in his younger days. "Maintain your heading and you'll be out of the rain in less than a full day; the island should be visible about half a day later."

"How did you creep up on me?" Marco had to know.

Astera smirked. "I'm better at hiding with haki than you are at looking with it," she informed him smugly before slipping off the rail and back into the water. The de-facto leader of the Whitebeard pirates slumped forwards again; that was _not_ helpful.

* * *

Two day later the Moby Dick was anchored several miles off the coast of a good-sized island surrounded by reefs and Marco was negotiating with yet another mermaid –this one a cute brunette– and a curvy, blueberry-haired woman who was pretty enough to be a mermaid but had legs rather than fins.

"Most of your boats are too large to make it through the reefs," the brunette mermaid said patiently, "and we don't really have room for one and a half thousand men to stay. Shifts are the best deal I can offer: two divisions at a time per half-day, returning to your ship afterwards. It'll take that long to get two hundred men through the paperwork Lisska has been assembling for them anyway and I'm sure they'll want time to process what they've learnt."

"Especially since I can guarantee the male members of your crew who _haven't_ sired a child at some point can be counted on two hands with fingers to spare," the woman muttered.

"Pardon?" Marco wasn't sure he'd heard that right. Less than ten out of about fifteen hundred men _hadn't_ got someone pregnant? That couldn't be right, could it?

The woman raised an eyebrow at him. "I've been helping with the paperwork," she informed him blandly. "Three weeks of sixteen-hour days as part of a thirty-strong team going over every last birth certificate and comparing the names to the ones on the list you provided. Believe me; I know exactly what you've all been getting up to and with whom." That sounded ominous. Which reminded him:

"Fox is here?"

"Yes: she volunteered to manage this whole investigation when it became clear quite how much work needed doing," the woman told him. "Without her help this would have taken twice as long at least. So, what are you going to do?"

Marco thought about it. "Two divisions per half-day is acceptable, so long as half of the division commanders can stay on the island at all times," he decided, glancing over at the mermaid. If Fox was here, so would Ace be and he wanted a chance for those in the know to catch up properly.

"Perfectly acceptable," the mermaid agreed. "I'll see to escorts; please load everyone coming today into boats with a shallow draught as quickly as possible. Ruby, please make sure everything's ready."

The woman bowed politely, turned and dived off the side of the ship, vanishing into the reefs at high speed; seeing how at ease she was in the water gave Marco a sudden insight into how much Fox had lost after being forced to eat Devil Fruit. Then the mermaid followed her over the rail and Marco was left to summon on deck his and Ace' Divisions and get them into the smaller boats so they could land on this hidden island.

* * *

When noon came around it found Marco sitting at a table in a large open wooden house, staring in shock at the papers and photographs scattered over half of the wooden surface. Opposite him his supposedly dead brother was leaning against the kitchen wall with an evil smirk plastered across his face while to his right Fox supervised a pair of ten-year-olds who were preparing the meal.

Forty-six children. He'd been expecting one, maybe two or three, but _forty-six?!_ The eldest was twenty-seven and had two children of her own, meaning he'd been a grandfather for the past five years and never realised it. The youngest two weren't even three months old meaning they'd been conceived on the Whitebeard Pirates' last trip to Fishman before Thatch was murdered, which had been almost exactly a year ago.

At least Fox had waited until he was safely inside her home before breaking the news; he knew his brothers and sisters were going to tease him mercilessly about this once they found out.

"Marco?" The blond Zoan looked up as Fox came over to sit next to him. "Are you alright?"

"I…" Marco honestly didn't know. He stared at the photographs again, noticing this time how many blondes there were, who had little bits of his bone structure showing past the chaos of mermaid genetics and which ones looked nothing like him. "I have kids," he said hoarsely after a long pause. "Dozens and dozens of 'em and I never had a clue." The identical twin ten-year-olds doing the food were his, too: One of Fox' aunts daughters, meaning he'd slept with at least one of Madam Pearl's younger sisters. Those two adorable little girls with corn gold hair and grey eyes were Fox' cousins as well as his daughters; a connection he hadn't even known existed until today.

Fox cleared her throat gently, drawing him out of his daze. "All things considered, I thought you might like to know about Thatch's kids as well," she said gently.

"Thatch?" Ace asked, stepping away from the wall and settling himself at the table. "Didn't he have a steady lady-friend somewhere?"

"She's another of my aunts," Fox admitted; "my grandfather is even more of a player than you are, Marco. Thatch has a mermaid daughter of twelve by someone else and three mostly human children by my aunt Pythia, who are aged between five years and three months."

Marco stilled. "The youngest," he managed before his throat clogged and he couldn't continue.

"He never got to know," Fox confirmed quietly. "My mother's been looking after them all since it got out."

"How many aunts and uncles do you have, Precious?" Ace asked Fox curiously.

"Considerably more than forty-six," she replied dryly, "and my youngest aunt was born last week."

Marco choked as Ace boggled. "Who's your grandpa anyway?" he asked.

Fox glanced sideways at him from under her lashes in a way that suggested he should brace himself for a shock. "My mother's full name is Silvers Pearl," she said sweetly.

Marco's eyes bulged as a whole lot of pieces fell together in his mind and several deeply uncomfortable facts brought themselves to his attention. "You're the Dark King's granddaughter," he realised. "Oh, hell: I slept with one of Rayleigh's daughters!"

"Several of his daughters," Fox corrected him; "you just didn't have kids with most of the rest."

"Most?" Marco repeated weakly.

Fox sighed. "To be born human to a mermaid, a child must have both a human parent and grandparent. Of your children, nineteen are human. That's fourteen mermaids you had children with who had a human parent of their own. As my grandpa is a major contributor to the gene pool five of those half-human mermaids were his daughters; one of the other nine was your Pops' daughter Medea, incidentally."

Oh, god no! He thought he'd recognised her and that felt like incest! Marco flopped forwards to bang his head on the table. "I should have known this would come back to bite me," he whimpered miserably. "I can't even take a break without incurring new responsibilities!" There was no way he wasn't going to acknowledge his kids: Pops would murder him in the afterlife if he didn't.

Ace promptly doubled over in his seat, laughing madly as Fox rose from her seat to check up on the girls doing the food. Marco lifted his face off the table to glare at his brother.

"How many kids have _you_ got then?"

Ace smirked. "None yet, mister stud."

Marco blinked; Ace was not the player the Zoan was, but he had spent each visit to Fishman with several pretty mermaids. "How is that possible?"

The look in his younger brother's eye was positively wicked. "I met my sisters on my first trip to Fishman and, as my responsible elder siblings, they explained a few vital facts of life to me. I therefore know how to pick up mermaids who don't want children yet and how to make sure they inform me should it happen anyway."

The Phoenix Zoan's jaw dropped. "You conniving little bastard, you knew! You _knew_ all along and you never said a word to any of us!"

Ace grinned. "Don't ask, don't tell, Marco; you certainly never asked."

Marco narrowed his eyes across the table. "I'm going to get you for that," he said evenly.

"Can it wait until after lunch then," Fox asked, walking over to them, "as the food is almost ready?"

Ace sobered. "Sure; no horseplay during meals." It sounded like a quote.

Fox smiled. "Glad you remember. Help Marco put his papers away please." Ace instantly did so, neatly placing each picture with the associated information sheet and stacking them in date order. Marco joined in after a few seconds, puzzled by his brother's sudden domesticity.

"Scary, scary mood swings," Ace muttered in response to Marco's curious expression. "Mood swings armed with Sea Stone knives, swords and a comprehensive knowledge of pressure points. Even though she always apologises afterwards it still hurts." He sighed. "And it isn't even my kid she's having."

Marco's lips twitched. So maybe he wasn't the only person having a hard time right now.

* * *

InsaneScriptist has been asking when Marco would find out about his kids and how many there were exactly, so here it is written. Poor Phoenix!


	125. Entrance

**Entrance**

Zoro did his best to keep his mind on the fight, dodging blows with his fledgling grasp of the Colour of Observation and aiming strong hits at his teacher. Mihawk was making him wear weights and increasing the load regularly, but the real reason he couldn't keep up today was Fox had gone into labour all of ten hours ago and the pain and Kajin's nerves were interfering with his ability to concentrate. He was trying his hardest to pay attention to the fight –there was a good chance of lethal injury if he didn't– but part of his own brain was also panicking and his divided focus was preventing him from making any real progress. He knew he couldn't be there, was resigned to not being there and had apologized repeatedly to Fox already for not being there, but that didn't stop him from wanting to be there.

Then suddenly there was an emotional spike from Kajin, a roil of terror and delight from Fox and Zoro failed to dodge backwards fast enough to avoid a lunge towards his face; there was sharp pain, a squish and half his vision vanished as the tip of Yoru's black blade scraped down his forehead, through his eyelid and utterly destroyed his left eyeball, scraping the back of his eye-socket with a crunch.

"Pathetic," Mihawk said coolly, pulling the sword back and shaking off blood and jelly-like fluid from the tip of his blade. "Why am I bothering with you at all if you are not prepared to give me your full attention?"

Zoro stood stolidly where he was, blood and goo sliding down his left cheek and dripping off his jaw to paint marbled lines of red down his chest.

"Well?" the hawk-eyed swordsman snapped.

The younger man bowed his head. "Fox is giving birth," he muttered apologetically. "It's difficult to concentrate when she's broadcasting."

Mihawk stilled. "Now?" he asked, startled.

"Yeah." Zoro said shortly as another ripple of phantom sensation tore through his abdomen. He knew he was only getting echoes but they were really distracting, if not all that painful.

The World's Greatest Swordsman stared at him thoughtfully. "You can reach her in an instant, can you not?" he pointed out.

"Yes," Zoro agreed testily –a side-effect of being bound to Fox was the ability to hijack her teleportation trick to reach her from any distance– "but I agreed to train for the next two years and I don't break my promises." Fox understood and loved him for that trait so he would never, ever as much as _consider_ breaking a promise.

Mihawk turned and sheathed his sword. "I have no use for a student who is unable to pay attention to his lessons," the hawk-eyed man said dismissively. "We will resume this tomorrow morning." He walked away. "Do not return late."

Zoro blinked, winced at an unexpectedly strong contraction then realised he'd been given permission to rush to his lover's side. Quickly cleaning and sheathing his blades and uncaring of his numerous bleeding wounds and ruined left eye, the green-haired swordsman vanished in a flash of white.

* * *

Law had witnessed several births as part of his medical training and knew all the things that could go wrong and how to spot them before they became life-threatening, but he'd never actually done any midwifery before. Fortunately his patient had, so all he really had to do was remain calm, keep a watchful eye out for complications, monitor her progress and not drop the baby when it was eventually born. He was fine with all that; less easy to put up with was the eight-foot fire Logia pacing nervously along the balcony behind the screens and raising the ambient temperature from 'cool' to 'slightly uncomfortable'. Law was accustomed to cold weather and the broiling heat radiating from the nervous bodyguard was stifling to the point that he'd had to remove his hat and jumper so as to prevent himself from sweating. Had his patient been made uncomfortable he could have justified ordering Spadille to go further away, but Fox was wearing a short tunic that stopped a few inches down her thighs and nothing else, seemed perfectly comfortable despite her labour pains and had yet to make any sounds of complaint beyond the occasional grunt. Her waters had just broken, so it probably wouldn't take much longer.

Fox hissed, hands clenching over her thighs as she crouched over the sterile mat Law had laid out to protect her and the baby from the very cold stone floor.

"Deep breaths," the Surgeon of Death reminded her laconically, keeping a weather eye on her to ensure he could intervene should she show even the smallest sign of losing control over her Devil Fruit Ability. She had not used her teleportation trick at all in the final month since arriving her last fortnightly check-up six weeks ago had briefly induced false labour pains, and Law did not particularly want to be blamed by the nervous guard should something Devil Fruit related happen to the baby. Fox had given him a Sea Stone knife and told him to stab her through the foot should she prove unable to suppress her Ability, but so far it seemed he wouldn't get the chance. A pity; she'd stabbed him in the arm –admittedly with a steel blade– during her check-up three weeks previously in a moment of hormonal irrationality and he felt inclined to return the gesture.

There was a flash and suddenly there was a bleeding, half-dressed green-haired swordsman standing to his patient's left. Law tensed, then recognised the newcomer and turned his attention back to his patient: it was the Pirate Hunter.

"Kitsune?" the green-haired man asked, kneeling and tapping his fingers lightly on the trembling woman's shoulder.

"Asura," Fox responded, another rippling spasm shaking her body. "Soon."

The swordsman nodded, shifted around to place one bloody hand flat against his lover's lower back and sat still, his only working eye following Law guardedly.

"So, you're the father, Pirate Hunter-ya," Law commented. "Where have you been?" Most of the world believed the Straw-Hat Pirates dead after their abrupt disappearance from Sabaody, with Straw-Hat himself the likely only survivor.

"Training," the swordsman grunted shortly, tilting his head as more blood oozed slowly from his sunken eye-socket and multiple other wounds. Law was about to probe further when Fox shifted, made a nasty keening sound in her throat and shuddered.

"Already?" Law mused, bending down to get a better look. "Yep, you're fully dilated. Push!" He ordered briskly as he sat up again, kneeling in front of her with the knife threaded through his belt. "In time with the contractions now Fox-ya; push!"

Fox grunted again and beside her Roronoa twitched. Law ignored the other man; it wouldn't be long now.

* * *

Two hours after being permitted to attend his daughter's birth Zoro stared in wonderment as his Kitsune cradled their daughter to her chest, rocking gently and cooing as she stroked the tiny baby's reddened face, as that was the only part not wrapped up in a warm blanket. The swordsman ignored the doctor briskly attending to his various wounds even as the grey-eyed pirate captain used a probe to lift his ruined eyelid and scraped the inside of the socket clean to prevent infection. So what if it hurt? He was a father; he and Fox had created the beautiful little girl with fluffy hair the colour of limes that was suckling at his lover's breast. Movement to his right made him tense for a moment before he realised who was there; he would need to get much better with the Colour of Observation to counter his new handicap.

"Asura."

"Kajin," Zoro replied absently, his eye flicking back to his daughter. "Isn't she beautiful?"

"They both are," the flame Logia replied, dropping to sit cross-legged on the rug. "What's her name?"

Zoro paused, remembering the mermaid custom Fox had told him about that required a father to name their child as an acknowledgement of their shared blood. He'd called the little girl 'Moth' ever since he'd realised she existed, but looking at his daughter he recognised she needed a prettier name, a name that demonstrated how special she was to him.

"Roronoa Mariposa," he decided.

Fox caressed their baby's cheek with a gentle finger. "Welcome to the world, Roronoa Mariposa. It's not as good as it might be, but we'll look after you until you're strong enough to stand on your own two feet and beat back those who wish you harm," she murmured. "No daughter of mine could ever be anything but strong."

Zoro resolved then and there to ensure nothing and no-one ever survived threatening his daughter, no matter who they were. "I'll kill anyone who tries to harm you, Mariposa-chan," he promised quietly as Trafalgar Law stitched his face back together.

"And I'll make sure there aren't any bodies left to find," Kajin agreed softly.

* * *

This story is getting rather unwieldy, so I'm going to wrap it up here. I may do a few one-shots to cover further time-skip events or I might not; I may even write a sequel once Oda has revealed what he has in mind for the rest of the plot, but that's some time away. In the mean time, thanks to everyone for reading and special thanks to all my wonderful reviewers! I'd never have got this far without you!


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